


Mental Fortitude

by otomeRan



Series: For the Love of Your Well Being [2]
Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Comedy, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Healing, Humor, Mental Health Issues, References to Depression, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Insert, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-27
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-05-29 08:40:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 80
Words: 31,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15069395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/otomeRan/pseuds/otomeRan
Summary: What does it mean to be saved? What does it mean to be strong? No! The answer definitely can't be Dr. Pepper and Ice Cream, you crazy lady! Drabble Series. SI. Slight AU Rated for Language, Mild Violence, Angst. Mostly Slice of Life. 'Casual Route'





	1. The Beginning - Ran

Maybe it was the desire to be needed again. She had once been needed by him. She had done everything in her power to give everything that she could. To be everything that he needed. She had thrown every caution to the winds and it had been worth it. She was loved more than she ever felt she had deserved.

She had always been lucky like that, when it came to judging the characters of people. Who to keep in her life and who to cut out. That is to say she wasn’t so lucky when it came to who she got to keep in her life unless she fought tooth and nail to keep it.

Maybe that was why, when she found out that one of her neighbors was abusing her kids, she just took them without a second thought. That lady was too busy being drunk out of her damn mind to notice. She just went in and got them out.

One of them had even been chained up. This was all sorts of beyond fucked up and she had no idea what the hell she was even doing, but then again she had always been impulsive. It just wasn’t her way to behave otherwise. It wasn’t until she got them safely back to her small apartment that she realized the major issue they were going to have as they both stared at her, one fearfully and the other warily.

The language barrier.

She did not know how to speak Korean other than the few words and phrases she’d seen from movies and dramas. That and how to buy things and how to get food. Which to her basically meant only the necessities.

She supposed that she had basically dragged them to her place, even though they didn’t yell or anything. BUT there were a few words that she did know and body language is always universal. She was proud to say that she had always been a supremely expressive person.

She gestured both hands forwards in a placating manner to show that she meant no harm.

_“Sorry. Sorry. Korean no good.”_

_She pointed to herself and her eyes and towards them._

_“Hurt. No. No.”_

She then pointed towards the outside.

_"Crazy woman. No. No.”_

She then gestured back towards them. Hugging herself before running in place and then jumped with her hands upwards into a V as if to say and here we are.

They could only stare at the crazy woman after all the gestures she just did as she waited for their reactions. It was then that another important realization dawned upon her.

_“Hungry?”_


	2. Purchase - RAN POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language

She was no stranger to children. She was used to taking care of people in general, it had always been her thing. Second nature. Something she never really thought about, but this was something she had never done before.

She had never in her life taken care of skittish or mentally damaged children. They were shocked and trembled at first when she held their hands to go the supermarket. They were going to need a lot more things if she wanted them to be comfortable.

It hurt her heart to think of it and it reminded her of when she was small and of her own mom, but she smiled goofily at them and asked.

_“Good Meat? Good Ramyeon?”_

They stared at her trying to process what it was she was trying to convey. Before she thought over what it was she was saying and how to word it better. OK was a thing right?

_“Meat OK? Ramyeon OK?”_

They could only nod dumbly not sure if she was being serious, had they not been shown a single act of kindness before her? That couldn’t be… right? There are so many people in this world. She wasn’t that special. There must have been others.

Leaving that thought for another time she decided for clothes and necessities first. She didn’t have enough of that kind of thing at her apartment.

She squatted down and looked at both of them seriously and she could see that she was probably scaring the crap out of them. She tugged on his shirt while holding up her wallet.

_“One. Shopping._   
_Two. Meat.”_

She did not know how to say food yet… Why is it always meat?

She had a feeling that old lady was probably chingaling her because of her lack of language skills and inability to haggle despite all the stuff she bought from her and the ginormous bag to carry it all. The only Korean she was fluent in was how to buy things but not to haggle. That and her math skills are more terrible than a grade schooler’s.

It was a good thing she wasn’t alone and was dragged out to get groceries before that old lady’s smile could get any bigger and her wallet any lighter.


	3. His Thoughts of Her - Saeyoung POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language

He didn't know what to think of this lady that took him and his brother from their house, but one thing was for sure was that she was as weird as she was strong. He saw how she had simply broken that chain on Saeran's ankle like it was a plastic toy.

With Saeran in one arm and his hand in the other she walked quickly with them to her apartment without uttering a single word. They both didn't make a sound. What difference would it have made? It had never made a difference before. They had lived here for years and no one cared before and yet this woman came. Were they escaping? Or were they going to be put out of their misery?

As soon as she locked the door, the brothers glanced at each other nervously before they turned to stare at her. She took a deep breath before giving them a big goofy smile. She started moving around ridiculously and speaking in broken sounding Korean and then ended it with a finale!

He... He did not know how to react. Should he laugh? Well he understood everything she said. Not surprisingly really... Even a toddler could understand it really… But… Something tight in his chest unwound. And like a distracted puppy she perked up and tilted her head and asked if they were hungry.


	4. This is Heaven - Saeran

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language

"OH MY GOD?!"

Despite the loud and excited yell coming from the woman holding his hand, he was only lightly pulled along with her.

"THEY HAVE DR. PEPPER IN KOREA?! THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE IT IN MEXICO!"

He couldn't really understand much of what she was saying, but judging by the way she was rubbing her face lovingly against the soda she just found, it was probably her favorite. She then turned to look at him and he could literally see the sparkles in her eyes as she asked him.

 _"_ _Want Ice Cream? Want Chocolate? Want Chips?"_

Saeran could only look at Saeyoung frantically hoping to find the right answer from his older brother.  What was the right answer?

Before he could answer her, she was already dashing off with the cart and telling them excitedly.

 _"_ _Hurry. Hurry."_

When they both caught up to her she was frozen on the spot as if in awe.

 _"_ _This is heaven."_

No. It's just chips and snacks…  She then proceeded to put one of nearly everything into the cart…

She then jumped onto the cart as it rolled forward slowly.

"Onwards to Ice Cream!~"

Saeran didn't know how she was doing it or why she insisted on it, but she was carrying everything and it was a lot.  She had insisted on buying the fabric bags to carry all the groceries and waved away the plastic bags they offered to sell to her.  She then proceeded to put on all the bags onto her arms like bracelets.

She carried everything out the store arms full of bags after picking up the giant bag from the lockers on her back from their earlier shopping trip.  The only thing she handed them was the ice cream and stared at them seriously.

" _Eat."_

She then gestured for them to follow her as they walked back to the apartment together.  However, after a while his ankle was starting to hurt more and more and he was starting to fall behind.  She was going to get mad at him because he was weak.  He couldn't help it.  It was getting harder and harder to keep up.

He could see that Saeyoung was starting to notice.  That Saeran was starting to slow down, but before he could say anything he was suddenly lifted up.

 _"_ _Sorry. Sorry. Hurt. Hurt."_

She held Saeran and cuddled him continuing to walk without another word. Before he knew it, he had wrapped his arms around her neck.  She felt so warm.  Was this what it feels like to be loved? It feels so warm.  Thinking back on what she had said earlier.  This is heaven.


	5. Home - Saeyoung

Saeyoung was surprised but grateful for the lady's actions, but he didn't know how to feel when Saeran had hugged onto her with such a happy look on his face before falling asleep.  It wasn't until they were almost to the apartment that something strange happened.  Her watch went off and her arms started to shake, but despite this she didn't wake Saeran.  She chose to hold onto him tighter continuing to silently walk back to the apartment waiting for him to open the door for her as she quickly carried Saeran inside.

 _"_ _Thank you."_

She quickly walked into the apartment and gently laid Saeran down onto the small sofa, before running off to the kitchen dropping off all the groceries before running back with a blanket to drape over him. She then looked at Saeyoung, first pointing towards herself, then towards him, then to Saeran, and then the floor.

 _"_ _Me. You. You Too. Now. Home."_

She then nodded as if that was that. This lady was crazy. You can't just steal kids from someone's house and make them yours. And then suddenly she gave him a look of utter horror that surprised him and started stuttering.

 _"_ _Uh…uhhmmmmmmmmm… Ehehehe…"_

She then pointed to herself nervously.

 _"_ _Gutierrez Hoang Ran"_

What…? Was that her name? What kind of name is that? What country is that?!

Hwang and Ran were at least Korean! What was Guti?what? He then pointed towards Saeran.

 _"_ _Choi Saeran"_

Then to himself

 _"_ _Choi Saeyoung"_

And before Saeyoung knew what was happening she had launched herself onto him and nuzzled his face.

_"CUTE!"_

 

This lady… Is crazy.


	6. RED is Love - Saeyoung

For one reason or another their mother didn't seem desperate to find them immediately, but it didn't change the fact that every day in the apartment there were always drastic changes.  Such as the second day of their stay at Crazy Lady's Apartment.  When they met her she had jet black hair.  When they woke up, it was bright red.  As red as their own hair and when she caught them staring she only flashed a smile putting her arms over her head to form a heart.

 _"_ _Saranghe yo~"_

They could only blush bright red at her silliness.  One of the things that he had to learn to get used to, was that she was very touchy feely.  She always hugged them and gave them as much affection as they wanted, but somehow knew when it was time to take a step back and just say it.  It was new, different, completely strange, but not unwanted.  She told them this every single day.  I love you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Korean  
> Saranghe yo - I love you


	7. English Doctor - Saeyoung POV

After a week her Korean suspiciously got better and she asked us something serious for once.

" _Hey… Do you two know English…?"_

" _No…. Why…?"_

" _Because there are these shows that must be watched in their original language_ …."

And she dragged Saeran into her schemes with hugs and ice cream. The traitor.

But that was how we started watching Doctor Who together. I didn't like how she dragged me into it and we spent more time trying to understand it than watching it at first, but I do like space.


	8. Dodge - Saeyoung POV

It was into the fourth week that she had sit us down calmly and looked at us with a very serious expression on her face that warning bells started to ring in my head that everything had been too good to be true and that everything was going to be falling apart. And that she was going to throw us out -

"How do you feel about dogs?"

"What…?"

"Well…. I have a dog… It took a while for me to be able to bring her here and my mother in law took care of everything for me already and like she's coming today… And I like just don't want you guys to like freak out..."

"Um…"

He didn't really know… Before he could think on it any further there was a someone at the door leaving a small cage in the apartment.

"So are you guys ready for her? She's not that big and she's really friendly!"

He looked at Saeran who stared at the cage nervously. It rattled with a whimper and whine startling the both of them. They both turned to look at her and nervously nodded their heads. She opened the cage and out popped a small stubby legged dog and as soon as she saw him. She ran up to him nuzzling her head against his leg jumping up as if to hug his leg. As soon as she finished with him she repeated this with Saeran going back and forth between the two of them. She did this at least three times before she started running around the apartment.

"Her name is Yumi. She's a Welsh Pembroke Corgi. My husband had gotten her for me a while back."

"Wait! You're MARRIED?!"

"Eh…"

* * *

Bonus: Image of Yumi


	9. Sick - Saeyoung POV

Ran panics very easily and a big worrier but despite this she is a very level headed person. Saeyoung learned this, when Saeran failed to get up for breakfast one day and had a headache and fever. Ran was supposed to go to work to that day.

"C'mon Saeran~ I made your favorite today it's chicken omelette rice." She breezed into the room to check on Saeran when he hadn't come out for breakfast to find him huddled under the covers on the bottom bunk bed. Saeran coughed and held her hand.

"It's okay... This happens a lot." She stared at him for a long time before calling out for Saeyoung and running out the door with her bag not bothering to lock the door much less close it.

It had happened so fast that they had no time to react to it and Yumi had ran out the door chasing after her leaving the two boys alone in the apartment. What were they supposed to think? Other than that the only person that had shown them this much kindness the past month had suddenly decided to abandon them. Saeran had of course started to cry bitterly and Saeyoung could only do his best to try to comfort his younger twin.

"It's my fault… Why is it always my fault…"

There was a sudden loud bang at the front door and suddenly there she was with a large basin as big as Yumi filled with groceries.

"Saeyoung! I need you to fill this tub with warm water! Hurry!"

"Oh.. okay.." As he filled the basin he watched her running back and forth in the kitchen preparing something after sticking a thermometer into Saeran's mouth.

"What about work? Weren't you supposed to go in today?"

"Don't worry bout it. I called out for a few days. Young Moon said it was okay." She said distractedly as she angrily stabbed at the lemons on the cutting board as she muttered to herself.

"I can't believe they don't have any limes here in Korea. Ugh. Is there anything equivalent to Pedialtye even?"

She had made some type of lemon-orange water wash for Saeran's fever. Saeyoung watched as Ran spent an entire day and night wiping the sweat from his head and upper body to keep him cooled down.

She made sure that Saeran drank water and ate chicken soup. It was the first time he saw how to take care of someone when they were sick. She was a pretty dependable person when she needed to be.


	10. Handygal - Saeran POV

Saeran was very curious because he had already asked Saeyoung and he didn't know the answer either. It seemed that he didn't really care to know as much as Saeran did, but how did Ran get all this? He stared at the wooden crudely made pots filled with dirt sitting outside the tiny yet otherwise empty balcony.

He had mentioned the other night about wondering what it was like to grow plants, since he always liked flowers, but had never seen any grow before. By the second morning after Ran had left to work there was a note on his bed It was a drawing of a simple plant in a pot with the word Balcony in English next to it. Next to that was a bunch of scribbled out words. Looking at it closely it looks like she was trying to write it in Korean, but kept on misspelling it and ending up giving up after three tries.

Staring at the pots only brought more questions because it was the same thing with the bunk beds they had. It was just suddenly there by the third day while they were staying at her apartment with no warning, with mattresses, bedding and pillows all ready for them to sleep in and brand new.

She saw Saeyoung hunched down on the ground drawing and suddenly the next day there's a fold-up desk attached to the bunk beds with chairs and seat cushions.

If there was more books or just-because-items for them that had no place to be put away there was suddenly a new shelf the next morning. He wasn't sure if it was magic or if he was going crazy.

These pots were just too much and before he even realized it as soon as Ran walked in through the door he just blurted it all out.

"Where do you even get all this stuff? Where did you get the beds? The desk? The chairs? How can things just suddenly be here?"

She blinked at him before looking behind him to see an equally shocked Saeyoung sitting on the couch at the usually quiet Saeran's outburst. She then turned to look at Saeran and calmly told him.

"I built them and made some of them."

Saeran could only splutter. "H-how?! W..When?!"

She shrugged. "I have trouble sleeping at night. I can get a lot of freebies from some of the locals nearby some of the jobs I take. Plywood and lumber is not that hard to come by. And I'm from Texas." She rolled her eyes as if coming from there should have made it obvious.

Both he and Saeyoung could only nod as if they understood, but really they didn't…

It only led to more questions… What exactly did she do for a living?


	11. Tears - Saeyoung POV

She never really talked about her husband. Only ever in passing. Was he a cheater like his father? Was he a bad man? Why wasn't he with her? He really wanted to know, but whenever he wanted to try to ask she would go a silly tangent about this or that and he would forget completely all about it. And so, he decided to snoop around the apartment instead, whenever she wasn't looking or whenever she was at work. Saeran was against it from the start.

"What if she gets mad? What if she finds out? What if we get in trouble?"

"She never said there was something we couldn't do and if it was something she wanted to hide, it wouldn't be right here and so easy to find. And she won't be back until late anyways."

One day Saeyoung finally found a disc hidden in her room and they watched it. It was small series of events really.

It was a concert of sorts of four men playing guitars. He could hear Ran clapping and cheering  _'Rafa!'_

 _'_ _Pfftt They made a ginormous poster of you and displayed it for the whole school to advertise for the school's music program. So how does it feel to be famous Mr. Gutierrez?'_

The camera was shaky as it was being held haphazardly. It was a very young Ran and Rafa.  _'So! We are both wearing like completely black clothing, we look completely creepy and goth like in TEXAS in the middle of JUNE by the way. Side note we were raised to be good Catholics. Why is all this important? Because we just got married! IN COURT! IN FRONT OF AN HONEST TO GOD JUDGE! So yeah we basically eloped. My mother is going to have a conniption. Annnnndddd Pose!'_ They both gave a silly pose for the camera before bursting into laughter.

 _'_ _Omigod Rafa I'm so nervous! I can't believe they picked all of my pieces for the exhibition!'_

 _'_ _Of Course! You're an awesome artist! There's no way they wouldn't be able to see that!'_

 _'_ _You really think so?'_

 _'_ _I know so. Now hurry they're calling you up for your award.'_

It was a dingy small living room filled with instruments with four people including Rafa stationed at each one. The front door opened to reveal a tired looking Ran and as soon as she walked in through the door the group started playing with Rafa playing the piano while singing and ending with a  _Happy Birthday Nhi-Koi_

She gave him a goofy smile before she told him  _'You still can't sing worth shit. Even if you are a genius musician.'_

"It's called Unintended by Muse. It was our song"

Her voice startled them. It was too early for her to be home and just as he was about to take all the blame to save Saeran. She sat down with them and sighed.

"It's not like I don't like talking about him. It's just that it's really hard for me y'know. I forget. I talk about him like he's still here with me, but he's not. He's dead and when I start talking about him I know I won't be able to stop. I won't be able to stop talking about how much I miss him. About how much I love him. About how much I wish he was still here with me."

"He's supposed to be here keeping me up all the time with his stupid snoring. Making stupid jokes with me and glomping me all the damn time like a puppy. Telling me that we need to get out more instead of staying cooped up in the house all the time. He's supposed to be here so I know that there's someone in the world that loves me for me."

And she sat there and she cried loudly and bitterly as they stared at her. It seems that even adults could be as hurt, as broken and as sad as they were. Saeran moved first to hug her and she clutched onto him desperately as if he was her air. Saeyoung moved towards her to pat her in comfort only for her to grab him to join their group hug as she cried.


	12. Intelligence - Saeran POV

One of the things he and Saeyoung learned that fateful day was that Ran was very passionate about the arts in any shape or form. She loved creating things with her hands whether they were tangible or not. That it was something for themselves and when they told her they didn't have any hobbies or anything they really liked to do in particular the look of sheer horror on her face was kind of funny.

She took them to the library.

"I unleash my minions unto the best weapons in the world! MUAHAHAHA!"

 

It was at that time we learned that even though her Korean got very good and almost fluent even. She couldn't read it very well and that she couldn't even write it at all. All because she needed a library card.

"Saeyoung please fill this out for me I can't understand half of this. I don't even know how to fill this out."

"HOW DO YOU EVEN HAVE A JOB WHEN YOU CAN'T EVEN READ OR WRITE?!"

And the grown woman actually whined stamping her foot, "But I'm just a bodyguard. I don't even have to be smart to do that. I just need to hit people and make sure that the person that's paying me is okay. I don't even need to talk to do that."

And this was how they learned about what she did for a living. They ended up reading at the library because they couldn't get a library card, because she forgot her ID at home in the first place.


	13. Garden - Saeran POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language
> 
> Bố - Dad  
> Mẹ - Mom

A new thing he learned about himself was that he loved being outside and that he really loved gardening. He also learned something else about Ran, she hated to be outside for any longer than 30 minutes, she hated sweating and had a strange aversion to the sun.

"I'm like a vampire and just looking at all this bright sunlight gives me a damn headache."

He couldn't understand how someone that was so happy and cheerful most of the time be like this as soon as they stepped outside. She had on sunglasses and a wide brim hat, but she was outside with him on the balcony with the tiny herb garden she had helped him start.

"Could we grow flowers too?"

"Sure Sunshine, I could get some materials and lay them out so we have more space for all of it. You have any ideas on what kind of flowers you want? I don't really know much about them… I'm really bad at growing things, but my dad is super awesome at it so we can ask him for some tips if you want. We could call him right now."

He was a bit flustered at that. Call her dad…? Before he could even reply she had already grabbed her laptop and was attempting at calling him. She started speaking in another language at first before she switched back to English.

" _Hey Bố… Mẹ around…? No? Okay good_. There's someone I'd like you to meet. This is Saeran"

Before he knew it an older man with thinning hair in glasses was looking at him from the laptop screen.

"Hello…" He said shyly. The older man smiled at him kindly.

"Saeran here, is like totally in love with gardening now and is in need of your awesome skills. Because if left to me he'll only kill all the plants and grow like superweeds or something."

"You're not that -"

"The orange tree -"

"Okay you should never…"

Orange tree…?

And that was how his relationship with Ran's father started and his love for gardening grew.


	14. Money - Saeyoung POV

He didn't really mean to… It didn't really look as complicated as he thought… It looked so easy when they were watching it when the Doctor was doing it… The books made it sound so easy… He could only stare at the mess in front of him… Of the remains of what used to be… That was when Ran walked in.

"Is that my laptop…?"

"...Yes….?"

"... Was it on when you took it apart?"

"No…."

"Thank god!"

"...You're not mad?"

"Pshh… As long as the hard drive's not fried or damaged we're good, plus I've got back-ups of back-ups of back-ups. Always remember Saeyoung. We will never ever be idiot customers."

"Okay…"

"Did you want to keep trying to put it back together?"

"Can I…? What if I really break it? What if it can't be fixed?"

"Saeyoung. When I bought that I was never going to see that money again. When I buy food and I eat it. It goes straight to the toilet and I never see it again too and I don't cry about it. So why would I cry about this?"

"Ran… WHY ARE YOU SO WEIRD?!"


	15. Memories are Cool

Ran absolutely loved to take pictures and videos with them and of them for random reasons just because.

 

 _gasp_ Saeran and Yumi napping together on the sofa! 100x pictures with filters

* * *

 

"Day 10 Tinkerbell: It has only been 9 days since I found Saeyoung taking apart my laptop and so far his attempts to fix it has yielded no results and only added more grouchiness to the otherwise sweet soul."

The camera turns to Saeyoung at a desk with a small pile of books at his side with lots of small parts all around him. "You… are… evil…"

It turns back to Ran. "Only time will tell when the task will be completed before he is turned into a full grouch and he will end up calling me something that rhymes with witch."

Saeyoung could be heard asking confusedly in the background, "What rhymes with witch?"

* * *

 

"We are walking Yumi! Our Corgi! To the park! Say hi guys!"

" _Hello~_ "

"SEE! Saeran totally gets it! Saeyoung~ Stop being so moody!~"

" _AHJUMMA! HI! Say hi guys_!" Ran was practically waving happily at all the old ladies passing by and by default making them do so as well…

"Ugh… I thought you hated going outside…"

"Yeah. But Saeran loves going outside and today is Saeran's day because it's not bright enough to blind me and the weather is absolutely perfect! Right Saeran!?"

"Right!"

"Plus we are totally getting snacks and ice cream on a perfect day like this!"

"YAY!"

"OH! MYGOSH SAERAN YOU ARE JUST ADORABABLE! We need a Selca to commemorate this perfect day! Comere Saeyoung!"

* * *

 

"Day 27 Tinkerbell: There are now even more pieces than there were when he first started. It has gotten to the point where I don't even recognize some of the parts anymore. I suspect he may have taken apart something else and has not yet told me and I have yet to find the evidence."

The camera pans to Saeyoung at the desk with a large messy desk with a large box to the side filled with even more parts. He looks extremely focused, "Stop calling me Tinkerbell."

The camera circles around Saeyoung. "He has not yet fully descended into the depths of the full grouch or will he fall into the manic insanity of geniuses considering how long it has been since the last update…. Only time will tell…"

* * *

 

The camera was set on a stand showing Ran, the twins and a laptop standing in the kitchen. "Today the four of us will be baking a strawberry shortcake!"

"…There's only three of us here…" Saeyoung could only look at Ran confusedly as she shook her finger at him as she gestured to a young girl on a laptop screen.

"There is no way that we could possibly bake without this important person! This is my future dentist genius baker sister Trang!"

Trang smirked, "If you baked with just Nhi the cake would have had become a salty and bitter abomination that should have no rights to exist on this plane."

Ran looped her arms around the twins as she nodded her head sagely. "I'm a very good cook… But I can't bake to save my life…I'm terrible at measuring things…"


	16. 100 Days - Saeran POV

He really really liked living with Ran. It was how he had always imagined it would be like if his mom loved him. She made breakfast for them every single morning without fail. She made lunch sometimes, or ramyeon for all of them if she said she was feeling lazy.

She'd always asked them what they wanted for dinner and she would always try to make it or she would get take out, but it was really nice. Something he never thought he'd ever have. Something Saeyoung always told him that they would have one day. He just didn't know that it would happen this soon.

He was a little sad today though, because it was their birthday but Saeyoung told him not to tell Ran about it… And Ran was going to be gone all day today because of work. Shouldn't he be happy? His life was better now. Today was just another day. It wasn't that special. Yumi could practically feel the sadness overflowing from Saeran and followed him everywhere while Saeyoung was busy trying to figure out how to put the laptop back together that he had taken apart last month.

"At least you're here with me." he said softly as he petted Yumi's soft fur.

" _Guys~ I'm Home with Ice Cream CAKE!~ AND DR. PEPPER_ ~

I already ordered some fried chicken but I totally cannot wait and must have ice cream like right now.

Cake? How did she even know? Saeyoung silently went into the kitchen as Ran set everything onto the table. There was a cake that said 100 days…

"Okay like you guys have been with me for 100 days now and I remember watching a drama talking about some significance of 100 days so I thought I'd surprise you guys with some cake! When I went to the store to get it and they thought it was for my kid and apparently, it's an important day for kids too! So, I thought that's totally awesome it's now appropriate for me to put it on the cake! And there you have it! TA DA!" Gesturing with both hands towards the cake with a huge smile on her face.

Silence~

He couldn't help it. He really really couldn't. He cried.


	17. Birthday - Saeyoung POV

He didn't know if it was her or if it was them that were lucky for such a thing to happen, but he couldn't help the but feel the tears well up in his eyes as he stared at the cake.

He looked around the apartment. The tiny balcony that had a small and expanding garden just for Saeran, even though Ran can't grow anything.

Her desk in the living room that ended up becoming his work desk filled with parts of her laptop that he took apart. The toolbox to hold all the parts and tools that kept rolling off the desk. The new little bookshelf holding all the books he was studying.

The room he shared with Saeran that was slowly filling up with things. Things that belonged to them. Things that she was giving to them just because she says.

Then he stared at the large framed corkboard that was slowly filling up with pictures of them together. There were doodles and drawings that he and Saeran had made pinned up onto the board with the words Masterpieces and Dreams painted along the borders in English. Could that really be true or was this all just a dream that they were going to wake up from?

"What do you really want from us?"

She looked at him puzzled and he didn't really know how to feel. He really really wanted to believe in her.

"It really is our birthday today… What do you want from us?" He couldn't help but look down as he said this.

It was quiet for a few moments until he felt her hands on his shoulders pulling him into a hug and then suddenly Saeran was pulled into the hug.

"I don't think I'm a really good person. I'm actually very selfish." She said as she crouched down to hug them both more tightly.

"I really like to feel needed and when I saw you. I just felt it in my heart. That you needed someone and I really wanted that someone to be me."

"I'm just a lonely crazy lady. I just expect hugs and love that's good enough for me Sunshine and Tinkerbell."

"…You give terrible nicknames Ran."

For the first time in their lives someone sang happy birthday for them. In English, but all the same it was the most beautiful sound they had ever heard in their lives and that was how their first birthday with Ran passed.


	18. First - Saeran POV

Ever since he could remember he and Saeyoung had never argued or fought over anything. Why would he? Saeyoung was the best brother ever! He was always looking out for him even though their mother knew that Saeyoung was better than him. But he couldn’t understand why Saeyoung didn’t always listen to Ran when she was so nice to them.

When they started to live with her he had taken apart her laptop and she had been fine with it. Then he had found an old phone she had and had taken that apart without telling her. Now he had in his hands some kind of game device that he was probably going to take apart. Something inside of him snapped.

“Saeyoung, Stop.”

Saeyoung stared at him in stunned silence. Mouth open. And then it just all came out.

“You didn’t even ask her. You’re just taking things and doing what you want. She’s being so nice. And… and… And… You can’t even be nice back!”

He had never yelled at Saeyoung like that before, but he had never been so angry before either.

“You would take someone else’s side over me..?”

“T..That’s not..”

Before he even knew what was happening Saeyoung had thrown the gaming device at his head and that was when he heard the front door opening.


	19. Hurt - Saeyoung POV

He really hadn’t expected it. Saeran had always been shy and quiet. He was very curious about everything, but he always trusted him to look out for him. To know what was the right thing to do.  Saeran depended only on him and to hear him talk about someone else like that… It hurt.

Ran was just some stranger that came into their lives, but he was Saeran’s twin!  How could Saeran be like this when they’ve only known her for a few months?! It makes no sense! He has been with him forever. Has been taking care of him. He is the only one that loves him!

He didn’t even stop to think about what he was doing. He just did it.

He would never forget the look of betrayal on Saeran’s face before he burst into tears and for the first time in his life he really didn’t know what to do.


	20. Frogs - Saeran POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Spanish

He cried more out of shock than pain. Because. It was Saeyoung. It was always mother. Never Saeyoung.

This hurt more than anything else he had ever felt in his life and he didn’t think that anything could beat it. Suddenly he was being hugged and he could hear Ran saying something to him. 

_“Sana, sana, colita de rana, si no sana hoy, sanará mañana.”_

He couldn’t help but laugh a little as he looked at her confusedly as she tapped his head before kissing it softly as she chanted that little phrase a few times over him. He didn’t know what it meant, but for some reason it made him feel better.

 

Some time later…

“Ran…  What does a frog’s butt have anything to do with healing?”


	21. Dr. Pepper Floats - Ran POV

After getting the whole story as to why this all happened in the first place, she seriously wanted to bang her head against the wall. It was her fault for not setting any ground rules in the first place. 

She stared at Saeyoung who looked nervously at her. He was probably expecting some type of corporal punishment, but she ended up doing something he probably didn’t expect.

“C’mon you guys let’s go to the kitchen for a little sit in and make some Dr. Pepper Floats. It’ll make us feel better and we can have a little talk okay?”

 

One Hour Long Heartfelt Conversation Later.

“Though… the next time I catch you guys literally fighting, it won’t be Dr. Pepper floats waiting in the kitchen. Next time your ass is grass.”

Silence… 

“Ran… What does that even mean…?”


	22. Mine - Ran POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language

It wasn’t really kidnapping… Really… She wasn’t locking them up… If anything it was like a really really long and extended sleep over that may or may not end. Like ever.

They had free reign to leave whenever they wanted and they were practically old enough to know that if they wanted to leave then they could and there really wasn’t anything stopping them from doing so. But they didn’t, and that made her happier than words could ever describe.

During one of her off days, when they were out shopping in the markets together, one of the ajummas asked the nature of their relationship. It was then that things changed. 

_“Omo. It’s so cute how you always come together to the market. You always have two helpers. Are you their sister?”_

She beamed at the ajumma and replied without thinking, _“They’re my cute kids.”_


	23. Hers - Saeran POV

‘Hers’

I…

And Saeyoung… 

Are ‘Hers’.

He didn’t really pay attention to what was happening afterwards; only that the hand that he was holding was especially warm. Her hand. And then they were walking back home. Their home. Happiness bubbled up inside him.

It wasn’t until the door to the apartment closed that he realized that he wasn’t the only one that was in a daze. Suddenly, the groceries were on the ground, and Ran was rolling on the floor while banging her head against it.


	24. Mrs. Kidnapper - Saeyoung POV

He could only stare at this crazy lady that had just self-proclaimed herself as their mother to the ajumma at the market, until she suddenly grabbed his shoulders asking him, “Tinkerbell! Am I a kidnapper?!”

“…Aren’t you…?” Saeyoung asked hesitantly.

Silence…

“Saeyoung… Since I’m now in the business of stealing kids I’m going to do this right… You are now the head of intelligence of my crime network!”

“What?! If anything I am your victim! Why do I have to be a part of your crime organization?!”

“Because I’m your mommy and you’re the oldest! Right, Sunshine?” Ran asked Saeran, who seemed suspiciously giddy.

“Right, Mom!”

“See, Saeran gets it!”

“YOU TRAITOR!”


	25. Package

Shortly after that fateful day at the market, Ran had been rather busy on the phone and on her new/old laptop for almost a month before she had made them take pictures for a surprise. 

The twins didn’t think too much on it. It was just one of those things that Ran did sometimes. It wasn’t until a mysterious package arrived that they both learned that they should always take what Ran said seriously.

Why?

The contents of the package.

Birth Certificates. Passports. With her as their mother. Country of origin? Mexico.


	26. Family - Saeran POV

He stared at the name on the form. Saeran Gutierrez Hoang

He couldn’t help but laugh at that. He is Korean and yet he is holding a Mexican birth certificate for himself that has a Spanish and a Vietnamese name. He never even knew about any of those countries until he met Ran. He didn’t know a lot of things until he met Ran. His world just kept on getting bigger.

“How?” 

“Well… Your father, is a Navarro. We just so happen to have a relative that is a mayor of a small province and family is important. We have a lot of connections in central Mexico, especially in Celaya.”

“And they did this just because you asked..?”

“Of course! Only because I’m little Silvia Araceli’s Rafita’s wife.”

“…Silvia Araceli…?”

“I had to call your grandmother to help explain everything. She’s expecting a call from y’all as soon as your Spanish is up to snuff.”


	27. Bad Person - Saeyoung POV

Ran is a special brand of crazy, but not unwanted. He thought he would hate her because of her declaration, but not really. His real mom was never nice. Not that he could ever remember her ever being nice to them. As her real blood son, shouldn’t he be mad at this lady for trying to steal him away? Shouldn’t he miss her? Shouldn’t he love her anyway?

It wasn’t until later when Saeran was asleep that he brought this up to her and she had looked at him with a stupid grin on her face.

“And you’re probably thinking ‘Does this make me a bad person? Does this make me a bad son?’ Am I right?” He couldn’t help but nod in reply.

“Words can’t break bones, but they can be very poisonous especially when it comes from someone that is supposed to care about us. You can’t control what other people do; only what you do. And if you have to ask yourself if it makes you a bad person then you already know the answer.”

“Ran… That doesn’t explain anything!”

She smacked him on the back of the head. “It’s mom now. And you’ll get my wise words when you’re older Tinkerbell.”


	28. Acceptance - Saeran POV

He started calling her mom as soon as she told them they could. He really liked it, especially the silly smile she would give him every time he called her that. Saeyoung refused. She bothered him about it for a few days, before she stopped saying anything about it at all.

She didn’t say anything about it anymore, but it still bothered him. He didn’t want to get into another fight with Saeyoung again… Why didn’t she just make Saeyoung listen to her? She was the grown up. He decided to ask.

She gave him a strange smile. “You can’t force someone to do something they don’t want to do. No matter what age.”

“Doesn’t it bother you??”

“Hmmm…. It does.  I care about you guys a lot and it makes me happy to hear you guys call me mom.  It makes it a lot easier so outsiders won’t be asking questions.  However, if I become the type of person that forces you guys to do something that makes ya’ll unhappy or uncomfortable then I don’t deserve to be anything. Does that answer your question?”

Saeran nodded. He supposed Saeyoung just needed more time to accept Ran.


	29. Flowers - Saeran POV

They were currently having a stare down with their mom and usually this meant one of two things. She was either going to tell them something outrageously amazing like the birth certificates or this was going to be a serious talk.

“I know we’re still about two years away, but I wouldn’t be a good little Asian mommy if I didn’t ask. Have you guys put any thought on what high school you guys want to go to or what you guys want to do in the future?”

He didn’t know how to answer that. He never really thought about his future. His only hope for the future was that life would get better and then Ran came along and it did. Asking for anything more would be too much wasn’t it?

“Heh. I guess asking two yet to be preteens is just asking for way too much. You guys have a rough idea on what you like doing now right? It’s fine if it changes in the future.” She said lazily resting her chin in the palm of her hand.

He thought on it and glanced out into the balcony. Both mom and grandfather were practical and only thought about growing things that you could eat, despite that their garden mostly only had flowers…

“I like flowers…”

Her eyes practically sparkled at him, “I can totally see it! Saeran’s Flower Shop bringing happiness to all! Or! Feast your eyes on The Saeran’s Famous Flower Arrangements.”


	30. Robin - Saeyoung POV

“What about you, Saeyoung?”

He was different… He didn’t like art… Or pretty things like Saeran… Did it even really matter? He was just boring…

“… Computers… Programming…” He mumbled.

Ran nodded slowly, “As expected from the head of intelligence of our crime organization. You could have a future working for the government, even.”

He reacted violently to that thought, surprising her, causing her to stare at him wide eyed. “NO!”

There was no way he was going to ever work for the government. NEVER.

Despite surprising her with his sudden outburst she suddenly jumped up, “OH MY GOD, I just suddenly had a totally genius idea. Since you totally hate the government, we could be like the defenders of justice! Like Robin Hood! Only you’d be Tinker Robin!!”

“Ran… That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard!”


	31. Secret - Saeyoung POV

As far as he knew there are few things in the world that Ran hated. The heat, the sun, cockroaches, and any type of religious activities; especially those that involved gatherings of three or more people. She said it had something to do with Texas and childhood trauma.

The thing was he really liked going to church and he really didn’t want to stop going. He really liked the people there too. He didn’t make any friends his age, but he did meet someone that he looked up to as a brother.

At first, it was just spending more time after church together talking about random things and before he even realized it he had become part of the Sunday church classes the big brother helped teach. He never had a dad or guys to look up to so this older brother at church was the nest best thing. This was really nice… Maybe he could start dragging Saeran along next time.

This big brother’s name was Kim Jihyun, but he preferred to be called V.


	32. Leverage - Saeyoung POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leverage is an American drama series. Modern day robin hood

Ever since that day she had the talk with them about their futures, she kept on talking about their future jobs or cons like they were real. Like they were going to happen and knowing her they probably were.

And then she showed it to us. How amazing it could be working together to help other people all in the name of justice. For the first time I saw someone’s accomplishments that made me want to be just like that person. I wanted to be able to do the things he did. I wanted to be like Alec Hardison. I wanted to be an amazing hacker. 

Too bad he’s a fictional character from an American television series, but that doesn’t mean I can’t become the real thing. I can become a real Defender of Justice!


	33. Red Spider Lilies - Saeran POV

“Pack your bags for a weekend’s worth kiddos, because we are going on a vacation!!!” That was the announcement mom made that morning and he was both excited and nervous.

Both he and Saeyoung had never traveled far from their neighborhood in all their lives. Just the idea of it seemed wonderful and amazing. He never thought that a worthless airhead like him would ever get a chance to travel somewhere. 

When they finally got to the location Saeran was amazed. They were in a park and as far as the eye could see there was a field of red flowers in bloom.

“Doesn’t this look amazing, Saeran? This looks so much more awesome than the pictures I looked up.”

He looked up at her a bit confused. “You looked up this place?”

She nodded, “I don’t really understand much about flowers or like them as much as you do and it made me feel a little sad... So I thought what could I do that we could both meet half way? Red Spider lilies are my favorite flowers and I found out that there was this special place.”

“And I was hoping that you might like it and here we are. We might not always like the same things, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll never understand each other. So was I right…?” She added on a bit nervously as she fiddled with her necklace.

Saeran couldn’t help but stare at her. She took them here just for him? Especially for him? He hugged her as he cried. He didn’t know that happiness could just keep piling up. Was this all a dream? If it was he never wanted to wake up. Did he really deserve all of this?

Saeran would never forget the day they spent together amongst the flowers at the Red Spider Lily Park by Yongcheonsa Temple.

Mom, of course, took plenty of pictures and videos to make sure of that.


	34. Stars - Saeyoung POV

Jealousy. That was probably what he felt seeing Saeran and Ran talking to each other all the time. Spending so much time together. They were more alike. She was stealing Saeran from him, but Saeran looked so happy with the things Ran was saying to him. What could he do?

It wasn’t until night time that he realized that they weren’t going back home just yet…

“What do you mean we’re not going home just yet?! Where are we going to sleep?!” Saeyoung couldn’t help but snap at Ran.

“We’re going to be camping out in the great outdoors! I already paid someone to set up everything for us and I have all the supplies we need in my backpack. C’mon, we gotta go meet up with the guide to take us to the location before it gets too dark.”

He didn’t know why it was she had brought them there or why she had suddenly wanted them to camp out for the night. After dinner she took them to the top of the little camper and there it was.

They were in space. There were no city lights or anything surrounding them. All they could see were the stars in the sky. It really felt like they were in space.

“Isn’t this cool? I always wanted to try something like this. Isn’t the world such an amazing place?”

Saeyoung stared at all the stars in the sky. All those ugly feelings melted away. “Yeah… It is…”

 


	35. Paranoia - Ran POV

She stared hard at the passports in her hands and all the documentation she had gotten her hands on through various means. However, it doesn’t mean much if there’s no evidence of them entering Korea in the first place. She had no contacts here after all. It was why she chose Korea in the first place.

Plus there’s the age factor, the DNA factor, and all the innumerable things that could possibly go wrong if someone tries to contest her guardianship of them. She’d be jailed, labeled a criminal, and all sorts of unsavory things.

She didn’t simply stop at just making the twins Mexican documentations through shady methods. She had also managed to get her hands on American documentations through the legal process.

Now she was going to go through with getting the Alien registration for them by claiming that she lost her original documentation. After this they wouldn’t have to worry about their identities or papers. So long as no one looked too closely at them then they would be fine.

No one would expect a normal person like her would go through so much trouble over something as simple as this, but she has never been normal. She has lived through many more experiences and overcome many more challenges than most would at her age. Paranoia keeps you safe. And it’s better to be safe than sorry. Especially when you’re breaking the law.


	36. Hyung - Saeyoung POV

He talked to V Hyung about his home life before Ran. The life he had with his brother and his mom from before, even though he never talked to Ran about it. How his mom would always tell him and his brother that their father was going to kill them one day if they tried to leave.

He remembered how sometimes he would sometimes catch someone watching them. Men in black suits. Always someone different. Never too close and never too far, but he had always been very good at getting away. Ever since they left their mother to live with Ran, those watchers seemed to left and after almost a year he was starting to forget what it was like. Maybe they’ve finally gotten away from their mother, she hadn’t even bothered to look for them after all this time. It didn’t matter what papers Ran got for them though, because he was still really Choi Saeyoung.

The sound of V’s voice snapped Saeyoung out of his thoughts as he spoke to Saeran. “Ah. So this is the famous Choi Saeran I’ve been told so much about. I’m V.”

Saeran turned to look at him for a moment and he could only look down in guilt remembering the fight they had months ago. Saeyoung knew that Saeran loved Ran and embraced having her name as his. He had been surprised when Ran didn’t push him more to call her mom and even more when Saeran didn’t say anything about it either.

“Nice to meet you…” Saeran responded after some thought.

V tried to be friendly by commenting on something Saeyoung had mentioned in one of their talks. “So I heard you like flowers. I happen to know a lot about flowers.”

Later after their meeting with V at church while they were walking back home Saeran asked, “How come you didn’t tell him about mom?”

“You mean, Ran?” he asked, to which Saeran nodded.

He frowned while replying to Saeran, “She basically kidnapped us. If I told anyone, they might report her and she’ll go to jail. Who knows what will happen to her then.”

“Oh…” Saeran looked sad at his answer and so he added,

“And… I just wanted to talk to someone about what happened before... Promise you won’t tell?”

Saeran was quiet for a moment but he slowly nodded. They were brothers after all.  “Promise.”

V became their first and only secret.


	37. Confidant - Saeran POV

Saeran never thought about talking about what had happened before he came to be with Ran. He was happy and he didn’t want to think about how life was before. What if it made everything worse? What if it made her realize what a mistake she made to take them in?

But..  She loved them. He knew this. As the months passed he could see all the things that she did for them was because she loved them. A stranger completely unrelated to them who decided to become their mom. Her hugs, kisses and care for them.

If Saeyoung could trust a complete stranger to their secret past then he should be able to trust someone that had become his mom. As soon as he started to talk about it, it all came spilling out. Everything, including all the sadness and helplessness that he had felt. She had just sat there quietly listening to him as if he was confessing the terrible sin that was his birth and life. 

After he finished talking he could only wait in silence for her reaction to everything that he had just said. Saeran was then enveloped in a tight and warm embrace. He could hear her talking to him in a quiet, but firm voice.

“I promise I won’t let you guys go. You are more precious to me than anything in the world.”

She then looked at him teary eyed. “After all, I may have taken you from that place, but you and Saeyoung both save me from my loneliness everyday. Remember that.”

Saeran nodded vigorously. He understood now why Saeyoung did what he did. He suddenly felt so much lighter now as if a weight he didn’t even realize he had been carrying with him had been lifted.

She then added viciously, “Next time anyone tells you that you’re worthless or not good enough. I’ll personally end them myself.”


	38. RUN - Saeyoung POV

It was only a matter of time before it caught up to them and it seemed that today was that day. It was supposed to be like any other day. The three of them were out shopping for groceries for the week, when two shady men stopped them.

“He said to make sure there’s no witnesses. We need to make sure that we tie up all loose ends.” It was the only thing that Saeyoung had heard, but it was enough for him to understand that everything that his mother had said about their father was true.

Everything happened so fast and he didn’t see what happened next, but they had dropped everything and both he and Saeran were suddenly behind Ran.

“Tinkerbell, take your brother and run back home now! Lock the door. Don’t open it. Go!” Ran then pushed him and Saeran to run as she rushed forward to stop the two men.

He didn’t stop to think. He grabbed Saeran’s hand and ran. He didn’t look back.

When they got back home all they could do was wait. An hour passed. Saeran started crying. As for Saeyoung. He didn’t know what to do. The only person he could think of to turn to was V. Before his thoughts could take him any further there was a knock on the door.

“It’s me. It’s safe now…” It was Ran’s voice! He ran to open the door. She was dirty and her clothes were a little torn but she was okay.

He hugged her and cried. “I was so scared that something happened to you mom!”  



	39. Suggestion - Saeyoung POV

Ever since the day they were attacked Saeyoung felt guilty for running away. He was used to running away, but not leaving someone behind like that.

Ran. No. Mom had kept hugging him and telling him what a good job he did for taking Saeran and running so that she could focus on taking down the bad guys.

She told him that everyone had their talents and hers just happened to be beating people up.

Mom took the next few days off and then announced that they were going to move to a better neighborhood, but he knew why they were moving. It was because of them. How could he have forgotten what it was like to be followed because of who they were? Who their father was? 

It was at this time that V suggested something.

“Why don’t you start working as a hacker? I know some people. You could start earning some money to keep you and your brother safe.”  



	40. Behind - Ran POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new character enters the scene!

It took a lot of her savings, but she managed to buy a decent sized two story building.  It was located in a somewhat busy district, but it was perfect for a small business. She had big plans for her little family in the future after all. There were no such things as set backs!

YES! BE POSTIVE RAN! She ferociously asserted to herself.

While she was trying to keep herself positive about their situation, she just had to be mugged by a white haired kid.

She grabbed him by the wrist after he had lifted her wallet when he bumped into her. She couldn’t help but stare at him afterwards. He was the prettiest albino bunny she had ever seen in her life.

She could have asked him why he was trying to rob her or if he was homeless judging by how dirty he looked, but the first words out of her mouth were. _“Are you real?”_

As if him struggling in her grasp was not evidence enough of his existence. “ _Of course I’m real! Now let go!”_

She swiftly let him go to fall on his behind and grabbed her wallet before he could react. He started groaning rubbing his sore butt, and she somehow felt bad.

What if his tailbone was broken? What if it was bent?!

Without any thought she grabbed his hand to pull him up and practically dragged him along with her. There was a clinic nearby the house, it was one of the main reasons she chose the place since Saeran got sick so often. The kid started protesting.

 _“Please! I’m sorry! Don’t turn me in to the police! I just needed some money!”_ He begged her desperately. It seemed that he was a runaway.

 _“I’m not turning you in to the police, you dumbass. I’m taking you to the doctor! You fell on your ass really hard! You could have a broken tailbone! Or worse! A BENT tailbone!”_ She shuddered at the thought.

He stopped struggling as he slowly starting walking slowly along with her. “ _I don’t have any money for a doctor… And I heal really fast anyway… It doesn’t really matter…”_

She continued dragging him along with her towards the clinic. “ _I don’t give a damn. I’m the one paying for the doctor. Better safe than sorry. You don’t know what it’s like not being able to sit for more than 30 minutes at a time. Trust me on this…”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - different language. This case. Korean. Regular type is English.


	41. Runaway - Hyun Ryu POV

He ran away from home and had been living out on the streets for about two weeks now. It was hard, but he managed to find a small job washing dishes that made enough money to keep himself fed. However, it still wasn’t enough money for a warm place to sleep just yet. He needed to get another job. He just needed to make enough money to survive; then he could finally start working towards his dream—To become a musical actor.

By chance, he came across a gang that was willing to give him a place to stay if he joined them. They didn’t expect much from him and just told him that for the initiation he had to steal a wallet and give it to them as proof. If he got caught he was on his own. They’d only look after him once he’d become one of them.

He was nervous about it, but he was tired of sleeping out in the street. He wanted to shower. He wanted a warm place to come back to and this was the easiest way to get it. Somewhere that he could be accepted. 

In the end, the person he chose to mug ended up catching him before he could steal from her and not only that, she ended up humiliating him by making him land on his ass. Now she was probably dragging him to the police station.

As he was begging her to let him go, he could see all his dreams slowly fading away with each step they were taking. What would happen to him now? Would he go to jail? Is this the end of all his dreams before he could even start? Tears of frustration and anger threatened to leak out of his eyes until the lady told him she was taking him to the doctor.

He tried to mug her and she was going to take him to the doctor? Ridiculous. As she muttered worriedly about possible injuries to his tailbone, stubborn hope blossomed in his chest; as absurd as it was for the victim to be worried for their failure of a mugger.


	42. Oh Brother... Hyun Ryu POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - different language. This instance Korean.

He was beyond mortified as he stepped out of the examination room. The lady patted him on the head as if to comfort him.

_“It’s okay. Don’t be too disturbed. It’s the doctor’s job. Just think of it this way. All men must experience this sooner or later. Think of it in a clinical manner okay? A couple years down the line you will have to do a prostate exam about every year. You already know what to expect. Just think of it as an early life experience!”_

_“Really..?”_ He asked hesitantly. He couldn’t think of any reason why anyone would want to experience something like that early on in life.

_“Yup! Anyways! Do you have a place to stay? I’m only asking since you tried to mug me and that makes me think that you’re hard up on cash. You’re definitely going to have a hard time for at least a couple days after a fall like that. It’s happened to my sister once and to me twice.”_

_“No… You’ve broken your tailbone twice?!”_

_"_ _No. I bent it. I think that was worse. It took longer to heal and my butt has never been the same! I can’t sit on it for more than an hour before it starts to ache. The second time I fractured my wrist trying to protect my butt…”_ She admitted painfully.

That was more information than he needed nor wanted to know from someone that he tried to steal from. She then simply grabbed his hand and started walking along with him. Where to? He didn’t know. It wasn’t as if he had anywhere to go to.

“ _Do you have anywhere you need to be?”_ She asked nonchalantly continuing to walk down the road at a slow pace.

 _“Not really. I have a job I need to get to later on tonight.”_ He replied mulishly. All the energy seems to have left him after the overload of events and emotions.

He really needed to learn to be more on guard and attentive, because he didn’t even realize where or who he was with until there was the sound of a door closing. He looked up to see two red haired boys staring at him in what looked like to be a main living room filled with moving boxes. 

 _“Sunshine. Tinkerbell. I’d like you to meet your new big brother, Bunny!”_ The lady excitedly said as she side hugged him.  There was a moment of silence as the three boys stared at her. 

One of them suddenly burst out yelling at her. “ _I thought you were kidding! You don’t need to bring home any more victims!”_

Was he really going to be okay?


	43. You Belong - Saeyoung POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Different Language. This instance Korean.
> 
> Bit of a writer's block and illness lately. T^T

It was just like their mom to forget to ask the important questions. Saeyoung really doubted that Bunny was that kid’s real name. Since he was the only sane one in the family—it was up him to sort out the crazy.

 _“My name’s Saeyoung. That’s my brother Saeran. The crazy lady is our mom, Ran. Our family name is Hwang or Gutierrez depending on who you ask.”_ He introduced the family to this new person. Mom was busy moving around the house. It looked like she was trying to prepare a room for ‘Bunny’.

“ _Your name’s not really Bunny right?_ ” Saeyoung prompted. 

 _“Huh..? Oh.. No.. It’s Hyun. Hyun Ryu. I… Uh… What’s happening?”_ Hyun stuttered, he sounded very vulnerable and at a loss as to what the heck was going on. A completely normal occurrence in the daily lives of the Hwang household.

 _“Hey Bunny! I got your room ready. So far there’s not much furniture since we’ve only just moved in a couple of days ago, but just let me know if you need anything and we can get it for you. I already prepared the bed for you. I’ll take you to work when you’re ready.”_ Mom informed Hyun simply before going into the washroom.

 _“My name is Hyun…”_ Hyun replied weakly.

Saeyoung patted Hyun on the shoulder. Would he be a fellow sane ally?

 _“Don’t worry too much. She’ll get your name eventually… If you’re anything like us you’ll learn to accept being a Hwang in the end.”_ Saeyoung consoled.

There was a beat of silence before what Saeyoung said finally registered in Hyun’s brain.

 _“You mean you two were kidnapped too?!”_ Hyun exclaimed incredulously.

In all seriousness Saeran answered _, “It’s not kidnapping. It was a rescue job.”_


	44. Dreams - Zen POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Korean

It took a while for him to finally let her know that his name was not Bunny—it was Hyun Ryu. Ran insisted on taking him to work later that night and he didn’t expect her to stay with him the entire time either. She had begged his boss to let her help out just for this one day for free, because she wanted to see what kind of job her ‘cute eldest son’ found behind her back.

Judging by the looks all the other workers gave him—he was never going to hear the end of it once he came back without her. They stayed at their station side by side the whole night washing dishes in the busy kitchen—just talking.

 _“So why did run away from home?”_ Ran asked casually.

Hyun stopped for a moment, surprised. _“What makes you think I ran away from home?”_

 _“I was around your age when I ran away from home for the first time.”_ Ran replied as if she was talking about the weather.

_“You did?! Why?!”_

_“It’s very complicated, but in the end it was my mom. She wanted me to become a perfect catholic doctor, but I wanted to be an artist and I’m not super religious. At first I did everything she asked me to: I went to church school, I prayed with her every morning and evening, I volunteered at church events and I tried reading books about medical professions that I could get into. As time passed I fell into a state of depression and yet no matter what I did—it was not enough to satisfy her. The first time I ran away it was with a boy, because I didn’t want to be alone.”_ Ran sounded a little sad as she admitted to the last part.

It took him some time to digest everything she just threw at him—by all rights a complete stranger.

 _“It was because of my mom too… Really it was my big brother. He changed. I thought… I really thought that out of everyone he would always have my back, but I was wrong. He’s just like my mom. They want me to become a lawyer or businessman.”_ He spat out those professions as if they were curses causing Ran to laugh.

_“Well what did you want to do then?”_

Hyun felt a bit shy to admit it to anyone out loud. _“I… I really like music and singing. Acting too.”_

Suddenly there were two wet soapy hands grasping his shoulders and he looked up to see Ran’s face—her eyes teary with a dazzling smile. _“As expected from our beautiful eldest son! Not only has he inherited all our musical talents, but your passion for music too!”_

As Ran hugged him there was only one thought running through his mind.

Did he just confess his secret dreams to a delusional lady?


	45. Jealousy - Saeran POV

It had just been a few days since they moved into the new house when Hyun appeared. Saeran had to admit that he was jealous.

The first day that Hyun arrived; mom had left them to sort out their things to work with Hyun even though she had worked all day at C&R. When they came back he found out that Hyun had a lot more in common with mom than he did, because she started to set up the TV just so they could start watching musicals that mom loved so much. He could see how excited mom was talking about how she was going to teach Hyun English so that he could see how good the actors were in their native tongue.

He was definitely angry when he found out that mom had given up her new bed to Hyun and decided to sleep on a mat in her room. When he asked her why she would do such a thing, she had waved it off laughing, “It’s no biggie, the floor is cooler to sleep on these days. I’ve been a little overheated lately anyways.”

Then there was the singing. Over the year that they’ve been together he didn’t hear her sing as much as she did now—randomly bursting into song whenever Hyun was in the room. It was how she was teaching him English. 

She still spent time alone with him—cooking, while he gardened and reading together. Just like she spent time with Saeyoung playing video games or trying to understand all the technology stuff that was slowly getting more difficult. There was also the number one Hwang family rule: they always ate dinner together all four of them.

Even so, doubts creeped up on him. What if she liked Hyun more than him? Saeyoung is different. Saeyoung is his twin. His other self. Would she then leave them?


	46. Guardian - Ran

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ran meets with Hyun's mother and brother for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Korean

She liked to think of herself as a jack of all trades or as she would personally word it a Jackie of All Trades. It's always useful to have a variety of skillsets because that's the best way to survive and it was the way of life taught to her by her dad by how he chose to live. 

She wasn't great at it, but due to her curiosity and natural paranoia she learned how to hack in order to get information. The day that she brought home Hyun Ryu, she had found out his background and family by the end of the day when all the kids were asleep.

It took a few days before finding the right time to go see his family when she didn't have work and the kids were busy, but it was a task that was unavoidable and best to be done sooner rather than later. That didn't mean she wasn't extremely nervous.

She was a responsible adult dammit!

* * *

"I don't want him associating in such a disgusting industry. How can he be successful in such a vocation that depends only on talent and looks? There are others that are more qualified. Others that are better than he is or ever will be!" Those were the words that came out of Mrs. Ryu's lips—the woman that gave birth to Hyun Ryu.

This FUCKING BITCH! She soooooooooo wanted to fucking smack this bitch. No. No. Calm down. There is a lawyer present. I can't go to the slammer for assault when I have people that need me.

"That doesn't mean that he doesn't have something to contribute. He is not everyone else. He is unique. As his mother—you should know that better than anyone else. He has a lot of talent and potential. I think all he wants from you is acceptance and approval." 

"Unless he plans on stopping this foolishness—he is dead to me. I will never accept an actor as my son." Mrs. Ryu screeched at her.

Ran gritted her teeth as she accepted the words, "Fine. If that's the case," Ran opened a folder that she had taken with her that held a few official documents. "I ask that you sign him over to me as his official guardian as he is still underage. I understand with your background—you hold business and monetary values in high regard—and that you would want something as compensation. I have done my research after Hyun told me about you; that your eldest is a lawyer."

Ran handed the eldest Ryu son the documents as she further explained the contents.

"These documents will have you sign all custody and rights over to me over Hyun. As compensation for the years you have raised him—I will be indebted to you by $17,000,000 won—which I will pay over the course of a year or less. I can give you $3,000,000 now and the rest at a later date. I'll be his mother from now on. You can tell all your friends and neighbors whatever you want."

Mrs. Ryu looked to her eldest as he looked through the documents and when he nodded, "It's as she said."

Hyun's mother got up and left the living room as Ran sat in silence with her oldest son until he broke the silence with a question.

"Why would you go so far for a stranger you just met? From what I could tell you've only known Hyun for less than a week. Do you realize that all of this is completely unnecessary? He will soon be an adult in a few years. You are just throwing away money."

Ran looked up at Hyun's brother to see that he was genuinely confused by her actions and decided to let him know just a little bit more about herself.

"My husband once told me that before we met—he received many offers and acceptances for a few very prestigious music schools and colleges—however he couldn't accept because of his citizenship status and because of money. It was a box full of his hopes and dreams that he had to put away. If I had met him sooner—would it have been different? I had wished so much that I could have helped him take out that box and make those dreams come true."

"Hyun. He is working so hard to make his dream come true and I just so happen to meet him at the right time—there is no way that I will let Hyun box up all his hopes and dreams." As Ran said these words she felt a conviction build up inside of her.

Yes. She was going to help Hyun as much as she could.

Mrs. Ryu stamped the documents with her seal along with her husband's seal with such ease. It made Ran sad, because she didn't even think to ask what Ran's intentions with Hyun were and she had just given her youngest son away like so much trash.

Did her own mom feel this way about her too?

She bowed to them both and left without a word. Before she could completely leave, she was stopped by the eldest son.

"I'm sorry. I… I thought my mother knew what was best, but after what you said I can't help but think that maybe Hyun would be happier this way. I love my brother and I just want him to be happy. I thought that if he would be practical and successful everything would naturally fall into place." He handed her a business card.

"Please keep in touch. I want to know what's going on with my little brother and to help him in any way I can. Please." He bowed deeply towards her. She stared at his business card.

Ryu Dong-Wook. At least his brother isn't a total asshole.

"Dong-Wook-a. You're such a good brother. Of course, I'll let you know. There's no way I'm going to deny my eldest anything.~" Ran said in singsong manner.

"According to the paperwork, Hyun is only technically your son until he is of age after which he gets to choose whether to keep your name or return to being a Ryu." Dong-wook replied seriously.

"Well since he's my son as of today—that means you are now my eldest son for the time being by technicality." Dong-wook laughed at Ran's response.

Looking at him she saw it—Hyun and Dong-wook had the same smile. They were definitely brothers and hopefully they'll be able to meet halfway again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zen's family members were never given names so I took the liberty of giving his brother one. As for the amount of money 17,000,000 WON is about 15,000 USD. I got the number by looking up how much it costs to raise a kid. Apparently, that's how much it costs to raise a kid up to 15 years of age.


	47. Hair - SAERAN POV

Saeran couldn’t fall asleep and got up to get a glass of water, when he saw mom brushing some paste onto her hair.

“Mom.. What are you doing?”

“Oh, Saeran. I’m bleaching my hair white. I thought I’d do this to match with Hyun to let him know that I got the paperwork done.”

“Oh..” Saeran remembered the morning when he and Saeyoung had woken up to find mom—suddenly having red hair and throwing hearts at them. He laughed at the memory. 

He eyed the copious amount of paste in the bowl she was using on her hair.

“Would it be okay if I bleach mine too?” Saeran asked hesitantly causing Ran to blink owlishly at him. 

“You’re a little too young to bleach or dye your hair.” Saeran instantly deflated by her answer. “However!  I do have something that you can use that’s a lot safer for your age!”

The end result had both of them with white hair with slightly pink tips. “We still look totally awesome! Two of my favorite colors!”

Saeran stared at himself in the mirror. He looked like a different person now—not like Saeyoung’s copy. His hair didn’t look like Hyun’s, but at least he still matched with mom. He liked it. It was a small thing, but it made him feel more connected to her. 

“What the hell did you do to Saeran’s hair?!” Saeyoung, apparently, felt differently—he was appalled.


	48. Not Ugly - ZEN POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From my own personal experience I don't recommend that anyone dye or bleach their hair until after they've reached at least 17 years of age. Your hair, scalp and well being will thank you in the long run.

Hyun woke when he heard yelling coming from the kitchen. He got up to see what was going on to see Saeyoung yelling at Ran—who now had white hair.

What? 

He stared at her—shocked. She flipped her hair dramatically, smiling at him brightly, her arm looped around Saeran—who also had white hair—his face slightly pink in shyness, and in a cheerful tone she proclaimed, “Now that you’re my son it’s only natural I wanted to match. It’s kind of my own little personal tradition.”

She winked at Saeyoung—whose face turned almost as bright as his hair—recalling the first few days when he and Saeran first started living with their mom.

Hyun looked down at his feet, deep in thought—his mother had always told him how ugly he was. She would have forced him to dye it if the salon hadn’t told her he was too young. He still recalled how they explained how harmful it could be: the fumes, bad reactions and possible burns.

He had been terrified, but he remained quiet while his mother had fumed as she wondered where he got his hair from. When he was finally safe at home with his brother he had cried about how he was never going to dye his hair no matter how ugly it made him look.

“You don’t think my hair is ugly?” Hyun asked in a small voice. The sound of silence after his question was deafening. He looked up wanting to see why they would suddenly be so quiet—they were never this quiet. He managed to see Saeran’s stricken expression before he was enveloped in a hug.

“You are so not ugly, Hyun. You’re the most beautiful one out of the four of us.” Ran tried to assure him, but he still had doubts—she joked around too much for him to believe her. 

“But my mom… For as long as I can remember, she’d always tell me how ugly I am—my hair, my eyes, my face, that I look freaky… At first my brother said that she was just trying to protect me, but then he said that my mom was right…” Hyun trailed off—recalling the conversation he had with his brother the day he ran away from home.

“Then they’re lying! Anyone with eyes can see that you’re not ugly! They’re just stupid and jealous that you’re prettier than they are! Who cares what those stupid people think! We’re your family now because we want you to be! You’re my hyung now, and you better believe it when I tell you that I think you’re good looking! That I.. That I wish I knew how to sing as well as you. I get jealous, too…” Saeran’s sudden angry outburst started out loud and strong, but slowly tapered off into a shy embarrassed admittance to his own insecurities. His face was flushed red from both anger for Hyun and his own shame—for having any ill thoughts towards Hyun in the first place.

Unable to handle the silence following his own outburst, Saeran fled, slamming the door to his room behind him. Everyone was left to stare after him in shock—especially Hyun.

Since Hyun had started living with them he had been under the impression that Saeran didn’t like him; Saeran avoided spending time alone with him, whenever Hyun came into the room he would lapse into a silence—choosing only to speak when spoken to… He had the idea that Saeran hated him—no matter how much Saeyoung tried to tell him otherwise.

Saeyoung was about to go after his twin, only to be stopped by Ran. “Hyunnie, I think as the eldest you should go check up on Saeran.”

Hyun was reluctant, he had been the youngest, he didn’t know how to be a big brother, and he didn’t even realize how Saeran had felt about him. Ran gave him a reassuring smile and a thumb’s up.

Okay! He can do this!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note - My Personal Life
> 
> The first time I ever dyed my hair was before I entered high school, I was around 14 years old. I'm Vietnamese—the stereotype in the US is that all of our women are beauticians. All of my aunts, including my mother have been in this industry or are still in it—at least everyone on my mother’s side at least. Who better to be their testers and guinea pigs than their own spawn, and I was apparently their number one guinea pig since I was the oldest.
> 
> I still remember how my aunt had explained to me that since I had ‘virgin’ black hair she was going to have to bleach it a couple of times to dye it red—I really wanted red hair at the time. I remember how much my scalp burned for the half hour I had to wait. My hair was a lighter brown color, but it wasn’t the red that I wanted. Maybe it was my young age or the frequent excessive bleaching and hair dying that day, but my hair has never been the same and neither has my scalp.
> 
> Clearly good parenting and safety was not a priority. I’ve had some of my hair ‘melted’ off from over bleaching and I’ve even had the skin waxed off around my eyebrows once.


	49. Awkward - Saeran POV

Saeran had felt shame well up inside his chest as he watched Hyun shrink in on himself—as he quietly talked about the things his mother had said to him—how his big brother had agreed with her in the end.

He felt so angry in that moment that he yelled out everything that was on his mind without a thought. It wasn't until after his outburst, that mortification started to set in.

If Hyun had not told them about this, would they have just continued living the way that they were? Being jealous of Hyun for things that he could do that Saeran couldn't? Being angry that Hyun shared things with mom that he didn't?

Was he going to become like his old mom?

He sat in the corner of his room—making himself appear as small as he felt inside—and cried. He didn't want to become like that woman. Even after over a year of being away from her—she still haunted him and made him suffer without even needing to be there.

There was a knock on the door, but he ignored it—thinking that Saeyoung would understand and just leave him alone. However, it wasn't Saeyoung that came into the room, it was Hyun.

Saeran stared at Hyun as he came into his room plopping himself on the ground in front of him. Saeran continued to stare at Hyun as he fidgeted nervously with his hands before he finally broke the silence. "I've never had anyone tell me they were jealous of me before… I've only ever been told that I was ugly or pretty. I didn't really know who to believe…"

It seemed Hyun didn't know what else to say after this as his fidgeting increased.

It was only fair that Saeran should share something about himself to Hyun, since he did it first without anyone asking him.

Saeran bit into his lip to steel himself, "Our first mom didn't like us, but she hated me the most. She said I was weak, stupid, a useless airhead and a good for nothing. I thought... I thought that she was like that because it was me—the one who always got sick. I thought she was right, but Saeyoung hyung was always there for me. He always told me that she was wrong and I… When I heard you say those things. It made me think. What if hyung believed everything that woman said too? It would hurt so much if he had abandoned me. He was the only person I had."

Tears welled up in Saeran's eyes as he tried to imagine what it would have been like if Saeyoung had chosen to abandon him.

"We've been so happy since meeting Ran—since we became a family—but we're all so different. You have so much in common with mom—I was scared that she would like you better than us. I'm sorry I was jealous. I.. I don't want to become like that woman. I don't think you're ugly. You scare me with how good you are at singing and I can't compete with that, because I don't even like singing that much!"

Saeran was too overwhelmed with his own emotions and tears—to realize that at some point Hyun was crying along with him. "You.. You silly little brother. I'm supposed to be the one to make you feel better, not the other way around." Hyun pulled Saeran into a hug.

"I'm sorry I didn't know anything. I think… I was just too excited. I've never met anyone that liked the same things and when Ran showed me all those movies and musicals—I was too happy to notice anything else. For the first time, I felt like it was okay for me to like singing and acting, I felt like a normal person." Hyun admitted softly.

Saeran hugged Hyun in return, he was glad he got to learn more about his new brother—the moment was then interrupted when they both heard a sniffle coming from the doorway. It was mom, who was teary eyed, and Saeyoung, peeking from behind her—with a worried expression.

"Can we join your group hug now?"

* * *

_Hyung - males speaking to older males (older brother/brother figure)_


	50. Early Starts - Saeyoung POV

Lately Hyun has a lot more proactive about spending time with all of them and took to his role as the eldest brother extremely seriously. Hyun was always trying to get Saeran to eat more, to get Saeyoung to go to bed at a reasonable hour instead of tinkering with the electronics, and by telling mom that it was probably bad for her health to be drinking so much Dr. Pepper every day.

It was as endearing as it was annoying.

There was one thing that set Hyun apart from the Hwang/Gutierrez household—he liked to wake up at an ungodly hour just to exercise. It wasn't simple calisthenics, it was an actual run—around the neighborhood, outside, as the sun is slowly coming up… Hyun simply could not accept that they were not morning people and loathed exercise as if it were a plague.

He seemed to have made it his mission to try to get them to wake up early every morning in order to join his runs. The only family member that welcomed such a change happily was Yumi—who made Hyun her new favorite person—the traitorous dog.

No one hated it more than mom. "Why… I thought I finally got away from the tortures of early morning training…"

Both Saeyoung and Saeran trudged along with her as Hyun jogged energetically in place at the forefront of their little group. Saeyoung was curious—he had never seen mom train or exercise much. "You used to exercise in the mornings?"

Mom nodded. "Both your grandparents and Aunt Trang like to wake up really early just to exercise. They're beasts when it comes to daily work outs." She shuddered at the thought.

"That genetic trait skipped me… If Trang ever comes to visit I'm throwing her at Hyun."

"Come on, we still have another mile to go!" Hyun complained as everyone else groaned.

"Why did we even agree to do this..?" Saeyoung complained.

"Because Hyun's too pretty and too nice. If we don't go with him he's either going to be taken advantage of or attacked by fangirls." Mom explained exasperated.

As if to prove her point—a middle aged man had stopped Hyun to talk to him, and Hyun was in the process of just handing the man all his money. Saeyoung ran to Hyun yelling—asking him what he thought he was doing.

"Oh! This man was saying that I needed to pay a toll to run this trail in the neighborhood—he said he saw us come by so many times and that the first week was free but that I needed to start paying afterwards." Hyun explained in a matter of fact voice.

Saeyoung stared at Hyun, before glaring at the man pushing Hyun's hands away before the money could be exchanged. "There's no such thing as tolls in this neighborhood!"

The man ran away as soon as he threatened to call the police on him, Saeyoung then rounded on his older brother to extol the importance of asking for proof and identification instead of taking people at face value.

Saeran then nodded sagely—agreeing to mom's earlier sentiment. "We need to look after him—he's too innocent for this world."


	51. Names - Zen POV

They were lounging around the living room one day when suddenly Ran voiced a sudden thought she had, "I think you should have a stage name. You know what? Better yet! I think you should all have stage names!"

"No. I am not going to be called Tinkerbell. It's one thing for you to call me that, but I'm not letting anyone else do it." Saeyoung rejected the idea as soon as it left her lips.

"Nooo… That's not what I meant! You need to pick it yourself! I have one too! I use it for my art pieces whenever I submit something. It looks so much cooler."

"Really? What is it?" Saeyoung was skeptical about how cool her alias could be.

"Leaf."

Silence.

"Why Leaf?" Saeran asked curiously.

"Well. Your dad liked to use Leafar, which is Rafael spelt backwards. I didn't want to just simply use it, but then thinking on it when I started working on art again I was trying to turn over a new leaf. So it's kind of symbolic for me—it's both me turning over a new leaf, and a reminder of him."

"That's… actually very cool." Hyun admitted as he became thoughtful. His stage name could have a special meaning—like Ran's. A name that he would choose for himself. The idea appealed to him.

"Ray… I think I would want to choose that." Saeran decided with a small smile.

"OH! Because you're my Ray of Sunshine! Oh my baby! I love you so much, you cutie!" Ran cuddled Saeran. Both he and Saeyoung rolled their eyes—now used to the sudden displays of affection with which she showered Saeran. The feeling was mutual since Saeran cuddled back.

"007"

"LAME!" Ran instantly vetoed Saeyoung's idea. He had in turn been indignant at her reaction, "What! That's totally not lame at all! It's a famous super-secret agent."

"Wouldn't famous and super-secret make it an oxymoron?" Ran eyed Saeyoung mischievously. She got him there.

"Shut up and let me think…" Saeyoung replied dejectedly after having his name rejected so quickly.

Hyun stared at this new 'family' of his: Saeyoung was bickering with Ran, who had her arm looped around Saeran's shoulders as he read a book about flower arranging. He wasn't forced to study or do anything that he didn't want. He wasn't expected to be anyone else but himself. He could like singing and acting, read about it, watch movies and musicals with everyone… He didn't have to hide himself. He felt at peace here in this home with his family.

"Zen… That will be my stage name."

"Uwaa… That's sounds so cool… It totally fits you! As expected from my most beautiful son!" Ran gushed at his declaration making him blush.

"WHAT?! Why is it only me you have a problem with? I'm the smart one!"

"Yeah and the laziest, because—they—at least thought about it. You just picked someone else's code name." Ran waved away his complaint.

"So did you!"

"Yeah, but it's still more personal than something from a movie."

"Fine! 707!"

Silence.

"Why…?"

Saeyoung was never one to be awkward or shy around them, but slowly divulged the reason, "I like binary numbers… But using 101 would make it sound stupid… So 707…"

"You could have just used Binary… I think you're just hung up on 007… Okay, okay 707 it is! But I'm calling you Seven." Ran mumbled begrudgingly, but then quickly acquiesced when she saw Saeyoung was about to protest about the unfairness of it all.

"Who's the lazy one now!" Saeyoung crowed in triumph.

"K-I-S-S. Keep it simple silly." The grown woman stuck her tongue out at Saeyoung who sputtered at her childishness.

Yes, he really loved these peaceful days with his family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My laptop is being repaired... The R key is stuck, and since it’s an apparent known issue so they’re replacing it. They said it would take about a week. For the time being I’m using my tablet. It’s a bit awkward, but it will do for now... TT^TT


	52. Grandfather

An older man, whom Saeran and Saeyoung had only ever seen from a computer screen, was standing in front of them surrounded by greenery and hanging lights of the rooftop of their building.

" _Ông ngoại_?" Saeran was the first to speak—he was after all the one that spoke with him the most.

Saeyoung was still in shock and Hyun had no idea who the man was, having never seen or heard of him before today. The big goofy smile he gave in turn left no doubts as to his identity, he was their grandfather, the father of Ran Hoang.

The older man ruffled Saeran's hair fondly as he explained his presence with one simple sentence. "I had to make sure that my grandson's garden doesn't get completely killed off by my useless daughter."

There was a loud screech of protest at that statement. "Ya! Just because I can't grow a sprout to save my life doesn't make me useless! I'll have you know I managed to build that water reservoir you designed in a week! The one that your cousin/nephews couldn't even figure out after a month!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ông ngoại - Vietnamese for Maternal Grandfather
> 
> Sorry for the long delay. Sometimes life and poor health gets in the way. T^T
> 
> Also my beta has no time anymore so I guess I'll just post my stuff as is. Let know know if there's any areas I need to improve on and forgive me. m(._.)m


	53. Party Pooper

Saeyoung stared at Saeran, who was laughing at something grandfather had said. It came out easily and free, without fear or awkwardness. Grandfather's eyes crinkled as he smiled at Saeran's laughter.

Mom and Hyun were busying themselves over the small cooktop with the grilled meat while they talked about possible clubs he could join in at school. Hyun looks so excited explaining everything to mom, and her grin could practically split her face in two.

Everyone was smiling and happy. So why did he feel like this? Why did he feel lonely looking at everyone enjoying themselves?

Saeyoung just sat there with them as he tried to smile along with them.

Until he was rudely pinched in the cheek by his mother, who was suddenly frowning at him in disapproval. "You're a thousand years too early to be lying to me mister tough guy."

He heard a smack and was suddenly let go. He looked up to see Hyun and Saeran with shocked expressions, while mom was rubbing the back of her head.

"Don't go abusing my cute little grandson!"

Mom stared at grandfather for a moment before yelling, "What the heck! Don't go abusing your daughter either! Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?!"

"It's not abuse, it's called revenge." Grandfather scoffed.

There was a moment of silence after grandfather's remark. Saeyoung didn't know if he should be grateful or laughing at the whole situation.

There was a strange look on mom's face before she smiled and then—this adult woman—bit into an elder's arm to the horror of the three boys.

Her response afterwards? "It's not an assault. It's payback for the bite when I was 6."


	54. Metal - Saeyoung

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Another language
> 
> Ông ngoại - (Vietnamese) Maternal Grandfather

Saeyoung had never spent much time speaking with their grandfather—it was always Saeran. Gardening was one of the connections they had with one another and lately even cooking had been added onto the list of things they enjoyed doing.

Even Hyun hit it off with grandfather very well. It seemed that they both shared a love for health and fitness. He listened to grandfather's advices on his daily routines to maintaining a healthy lifestyle like a puppy, while he showcased his muscles to prove his point—Saeyoung now understood his mom a little better.

As for Saeyoung, he felt awkward around the older man—he was tan and well built despite his age due to his active lifestyle. There was nothing he could think about to talk with him. There didn't seem to be anything he could relate to the older man with and yet here they were home alone working on some kind of project.

" _Ông ngoại…_ What exactly are we doing…?" Saeyoung reluctantly asked.

"We're going to weld you a work station."

What?

Saeyoung spent the day learning how to weld from his grandfather—how to build something from nothing—with just scraps of metal. It was amazing.

> _Ông ngoại_  is amazing.

"Saeyoung... There's something I came across that I wanted to buy for you..."

* * *

"What is that?" Ran's voice was flat as she asked this question.

"It's a car." Her father stated simply as if she were stupid.

"I know it's a car, but what is it doing in our house?" There was a hint of frustration in Ran's voice as she asked her father.

"I bought it for Saeyoung."

"He's 13, he can't have a car." Ran said resigned, pinching the area between her eyes to ward off the headache that was sure to come.

"I had a car when I was 13." Her father sounded petulant as he stated this fact.

"THAT WAS IN VIETNAM! THIS IS KOREA! There are laws! He can't even drive it until he's 18!" Ran yelled exasperated with her father.

"Relax. It doesn't even work, yet. Right now, it's just a project for him to work on for a few years. He'll gain a better understanding about cars and by the time he's done he'll be of age." Her father assured her.

It was with that comment that she finally sighed and let go of the issue. Her father winked at Saeyoung giving him a thumbs up to which Saeyoung could only grin happily. He loved his  _ông ngoại!_

 

Of course none of them realized it would only take Saeyoung two years to fix up the car much to Ran's horror and her father's utter delight.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I struggled a bit with this. I had an idea of what things were happening, but not how to word it. I had it all up for a while and then my ông ngoại died. Although this was about my dad being one. I'd like to dedicate this to him, because everyone I know in my life is a source of inspiration to me. I didn't get to spend much time with him, but I won't forget the times that we did.


	55. Man to Man - Zen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics - Another language
> 
> Ông ngoại - Vietnamese for maternal Grandfather  
> bô - Vietnamese for Dad or Daddy

Zen had never spent any time with his father growing up, but spending time with Ran’s father or rather _ông ngoại—_ as he insisted to be called. He wanted to believe that this was what it was like to have a father who wanted to spend time with him.

 _Ông ngoại_ was always ready and willing to go with him on his early morning runs with Yumi, greeting him with a smile each day. He didn’t really understand it, but it made him feel just a little bit special that this was something that only they shared.

They would always talk after they finished their run and went onto stretching. Most of the time _ông ngoại_ would tell him stories about the days of his youth. His struggles, his accomplishments and all the trouble he used to get into.

“As a person you are going to face a lot of hardships in life. I can only tell you that as your family we will always be here for you and try to make sure you don’t have to suffer the same hardships we did. Only you can decide what kind of man you will become.”

In the end Zen was sniffling into his sleeve as _ông ngoại_ patted his back, before he decided to change the subject. “Now Saeyoung was telling me that in this country that there was something you could do when you turn 16…” 

* * *

There was a stare down between father and daughter, before Ran asked. “ _Bô_ … Why is there a motorcycle in the yard?”

Her father was blasé in his reply. “Oh. That’s for Hyun. I bought it for him.”

Ran’s frustration was clear in her reply, “WHY?! He’s just a high schooler why does he even need a motorcycle?!”

Ran’s father shrugged. “Eh. I thought it would have been unfair for me to get Saeyoung a car and not get Hyun something.”

Ran blanched at her father’s reply. “OH MY GOD! DID YOU BUY SAERAN A CAR TOO?! Where are you hiding all these vehicles?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized that within the game, Zen has never once talked about his dad. He only ever mentions his mom and his brother. Though he does hope to make up with his family one day. So it makes me think that maybe his dad doesn't spend any time in his life to make any impact on him. It makes me think that his dad probably just follows whatever his wife tells him.


	56. Beauty & Practicality - Saeran

Saeran loved his grandfather. This has always been a fact ever since their first conversation on that laptop screen almost two years ago. His grandfather taught him a lot; about gardening and about life. Saeran loved their talks on the weekends, when grandfather had the time.

However, there was one distressing fact that his mom had always stressed to him about his grandfather—he didn’t care for beauty or art, the only thing that mattered was that it was practical and that it worked. The older man had only ever grown things he could eat and everything he had ever built—were things to be used.

Saeran was different, he liked flowers and beautiful things. Things didn’t always need to be useful, because it’s existence was happiness in itself—that was what Saeran wanted to believe. He liked to think that was what mom in believed too.

As Saeran watched grandfather carefully amending the soil around the lily of the valley, Saeran knew how much his grandfather returned his love. A practical man like grandfather would never do something so unnecessary. It filled Saeran with affection and confidence, because the world is just too beautiful to always be practical and one day Saeran would make his grandfather see that. He was sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN.  
> In some of my previous chapters I used Vietnamese terms and words, Korean terms as well. I also used italics as a means to show a change in different languages. Why? Because I felt language is important. There are some words and terms that in English just felt limited.
> 
> However as I was looking through on a different browser I realized that one of the Vietnamese words wasn't being displayed correctly, an accent was missing turning Dad into Bowl. T^T
> 
> It made me decide to just forgo any Vietnamese words other than names, since the accents for the words can change the meaning completely. I will still use some Korean terms of endearments, there really is no English equivalent.


	57. What You Need - Ran

Months of planning for the surprise party had paid off. The party had gone perfectly. Ran's father being here for everything filled her with both relief and dread.

Relief—because now there was someone here that could finally see the boys. He could see them. She knew she could always trust her dad with the them, as long as her mother wasn't here to influence him.

Dread—but, because he could see them, her, and everything else; he would be able to tell her if she was fucking up. The thought filled her. Terrified her. She really was afraid she was messing everything up. That feeling, swirling around in her mind, made her take more shifts at work.

On the plus side, this left her dad more opportunities to spend more time with the boys the past week. While her dad managed to spend some time with each of the boys before, they never managed to find the time to speak alone. Just like he never had time for Ran when she was growing up. Before Ran even realized—it was already her Dad's last night.

Ran hung her head low in shame, she wanted to cry as she started to apologize, "I'm sorry... I didn't even get to spend any time with you, all I did was work while you were here."

Her father dismissed her apologies, "No, that's fine I understand. I'm actually very proud of you."

Ran didn't expect to hear those words as she stared at her father in shock as he continued to speak.

"You kept on running off. I didn't know if you were ever going to do anything right with your life. Nothing you have ever chosen made any scrap of sense. I can't understand why you would choose to live such an unstable lifestyle, but you're doing good. For yourself and those boys."

Tears streamed down Ran's face as she moved to hug her dad. "You really think so dad?"

Her dad awkwardly patted her back, "Of course, you stupid daughter."


	58. Bittersweet Goodbyes

It seemed as if was just yesterday when they met grandfather for the first time on the rooftop garden. Today, they were already at the airport saying their goodbyes. It had been nice having another adult around the house to look up to. Even if Grandfather had just came to visit, it had made the family feel more whole. Saeran wished it could always be this way.

The night before grandfather was to leave, mom had stopped by Saeran's room to tell him something.

~ "Before grandpa leaves, hug him and tell him you love him okay?"

Saeran had looked at his mom funny. "I was going to do that anyway. Why did you need to tell me that?"

His mom sat down next to him and hugged him, "You know… I'm always telling you guys I love you and hugging you, but I've never even hugged my parents or told them I love you. It took me a very long time until I learned how."

Saeran was shocked at this new information. His super affectionate mom didn't know how to hug?! Or say I love you?!

"I'm just warning you, grandpa isn't good at hugs or things like that. He might just grunt at you, but he does love you." His mom continued.

Instead of simply stating he understood, Saeran hugged his mom tightly as he tried to think what his mom's life was like when she was little. Had she been as lonely and sad as he and Saeyoung were? Surely not? ~

When Saeran told his grandpa "I love you", he hugged him affectionately. Saeran could see and feel how shocked the older man was, as grandpa awkwardly patted him on the back, saying nothing. It made Saeran want to cry, because it really was true. Grandpa was too practical to do something he thought wasn't necessary. It made Saeran hug the older man harder to keep the tears at bay. "I'm going to miss gardening with you, grandpa."

Saeran heard a sniffle and looked up to see his grandpa wiping at his eyes, he was crying. "I'm going to miss you too my cute grandson."

It was just supposed to be a simple goodbye, but it had ended up as a sobbing mess with everyone hugging each other speaking words of love.

It didn't matter that they were teenage boys, an old man and an adult woman at a public place.

Some things always needed to be said and done no matter who you are or where you are.

After all, the ways of making a heart happy are seldomly practical.


	59. Christmas Eve with V Hyung

Ever since Saeyoung and Saeran had come to live with mom, they had learned she allowed them freedom to do as they pleased as long as they stayed safe. One of the freedoms that Saeyoung treasured most was that he was allowed to go to the church services on Sundays by himself.

It was strange to Saeyoung, that even though mom had been raised as a Catholic, she didn't like to attend the services. The topic of church itself seemed to make her sad.

Despite mom's dislike for the services, she always told him, "Do what you believe is right, but don't lose yourself to your beliefs." Saeyoung didn't really understand what she meant, but she had encouraged him anyway, because it was what he wanted.

This year was different, because Saeyoung and Saeran were going to spend Christmas Eve with V hyung. It had taken Saeyoung a week of pleading to finally convince mom that he and Saeran were old enough to spend Christmas eve at his friend's house alone.

~"Please! It's all I want for Christmas this year! I just want to be able to spend the night at my friend's house with Saeran!" Saeyoung begged.

Mom frowned. "I've never even met this friend of yours. Shouldn't I at least meet his parents?"

Saeyoung panicked, mom and V couldn't meet. Not now. Mom could get in trouble because of him and Saeran. In his panic he lashed out at his mom, " He's my best friend! Don't you trust me? I know him! He wouldn't do anything bad to me!"

There was weird look on mom's face before she gave him a small smile, placing a her hand on his head and ruffling it, "It's not that I don't trust you. I'm just a little worried about you guys. If this is what you really want, then I'll let you guys go as long as you call me to make sure you're safe."

Saeyoung threw his arms around his mom's waist to hug her tightly. "Thanks mom!"

She laughed slightly as she returned the hug, "I thought I'd have more time with you guys, but you're all grown up now."~

It turned out even more different than Saeyoung could have expected, because of Rika. She was V's friend. She was always by his side, and Saeyoung almost always saw them together. He felt they were more than just friends.

The four of them were spending Christmas eve together, exchanging gifts, smiling, laughing, and being happy. V was taking pictures and Rika was… Rika was hugging Saeran, like mom usually does… They looked like a happy family…

It made Saeyoung feel sick, because he and Saeran had left their real mom at home on Christmas eve to spend time with someone else.

"Saeyoung what's wrong?" V had his hand on Saeyoung's shoulder as he asked, he sounded worried.

Saeyoung didn't know what to say, he didn't want to hurt V hyung, "I… I'm just not used to spending Christmas like this, it feels like we're a family."

Saeran stared at Saeyoung in shock for a moment, but it passed before understanding took it's place. Saeyoung knew he had upset his brother by making him realize why being here was wrong.

V smiled at Saeyoung, "Isn't that a good thing? Aren't you two happy?"

No. No, he wasn't. The most important person in his life wasn't even here. "I'm sorry V hyung. I think we should leave, we don't belong here."

Before V or Rika could protest, Saeyoung had taken Saeran to go home. To spend Christmas Eve with their mom and Zen. With their family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hyung - Korean term for older brother or older brother figure, used between two males


	60. Christmas Interlude - Saeran

Most of the time Saeran always listened to his older brother, Saeyoung. He was smarter, healthier, and older; which in Saeran’s mind, meant that Saeyoung knew more than him. After all, he had protected Saeran all his life. Lately Saeran found he didn’t understand something about his brother, and it mostly had to do with V hyung.

Saeran didn’t want to spend the night at V hyung’s house, and had only gone with Saeyoung because he saw how badly his brother had wanted to go. Saeyoung had pleaded and begged mom until she finally agreed, but had refused to tell her who he was staying with exactly. V was to remain a secret to mom.

When they were finally spending time with V, just as Saeyoung wanted, Saeyoung had said that V and Rika were like their family. It felt wrong, because mom and Zen were their family. Saeran had not wanted to be at V’s house. When he looked at his brother, Saeran realized it. Saeyoung was upset because he wanted to go home, too. They left V’s house without explaining, because Ran was also a secret to V.

“Why can’t we just tell mom about V hyung? Then he could just come over to our house, Wouldn’t that solve everything?” Saeran asked.

Saeyoung sighed. “We can’t, because they can’t ever meet. V can’t know what mom is to us.”

“Why not? I thought you trust him?”

“I do, but V hyung is a good and honest person. What mom did was against the law. If they ever meet I’m scared something will happen to mom…”

“Hyung… You can’t lie forever. It’s bad!”

“I know, but I’m going to wait until we’re old enough to protect mom first.” Saeyoung declared with determination.

Saeran sighed, “Alright, but this is the only thing okay? I hate having secrets and having to lie. Especially to mom.” 

“Don’t worry Saeran. Everything will work out. I actually already got started on something. I’ve been getting into hacking and I’ve even been getting jobs and money for it.” Saeyoung started to explain.


	61. Strange Christmas Traditions - Zen

Growing up, Zen had only ever eaten two types of foods-Korean dishes or fast food. It was easy to find and didn't require much thought, because anything else would be too fancy or too exotic. In the end, it didn't matter because he liked to keep his body lean and healthy, and the best way to do that was with simple, healthy foods. His healthy habits and general knowledge of food would have stayed that way if it wasn't for the fact that Ran loved carbs, and trying new-unhealthy-foods.

Apparently, Christmas for Ran meant it was the season to be eating different kinds of pasta dishes.

What was even more amazing was that Ran made all of these exotic dishes herself; from scratch. Chicken Parmigiana. Lasagna. Pesto Pasta. Spaghetti. Zen had needed to ask what those dishes were, because he had never ate anything like that before in his life.

He was 16! Yet, he still needed someone to tell him what things were called. He felt so stupid and embarrassed, because it didn't even look like the twins needed that kind of help. He was so angry with himself; he didn't notice Ran sitting next to him until she was ruffling his hair.

"You have such an expressive face. I can tell what you're thinking just by looking at it." Ran teased.

Zen huffed, now more embarrassed knowing that Ran had noticed his discomfort.

"Just because you're older doesn't mean you will always know everything, because no one knows everything. It just means that you still have so much more of the world to see, to learn and experience!" Ran enthused.

"What do you mean…"

"Hmm… What kind of new things have you learned this year?"

Before Zen lived with Ran and the twins, he never studied English outside of school. Now, he had to use it. He spoke it regularly enough to be fluent. They watched movies and musicals in English at home so often that it became normal to be able to speak, hear and listen to both Korean and English.

Zen didn't used to know anything about electronics, but it was something Saeyoung loved to talk about. While he still didn't know much, he now understood technology well enough to use all the things Saeyoung made and understand how they worked.

Before Zen had to help Saeran with gardening, he wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between a weed and a plant; nor the meaning behind any of the flowers that Saeran grew. He had never felt the information was important before.

"I learned a lot…" Zen slowly admitted.

Ran nodded, "What do you think would have been different if you weren't exposed to newer things? If you didn't try something new?"

Zen's thoughts suddenly went back to before he met Ran. If he had not met her, he would still be at his old home. He would be listening to his mother, following whatever she wanted, and probably doing something he hated.

There was a sudden flick to his forehead. "OW!" Zen exclaimed grasping at his forehead as he glared at Ran.

"I'm trying to cheer you up, not depress you! What I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't get so upset when you don't know something. You should just think of it as gaining more experience to become more awesome."

"I'm not that awesome though…" Zen mumbled glumly.

Ran gasped in horror, "Zen?! Not awesome?! The blasphemy you speaketh! You! Are totally super special awesome! He can sing! He can dance! He can act! Oh, he also happens to be the pretty one."

Zen laughed at Ran's silliness as she explained his 'awesomeness'. He didn't always feel confident in himself, but Ran was right. People are a sum of their experiences, and he didn't have much of it yet. It didn't make him inferior, it just meant there was always room to improve and grow.

"But why are we eating this kind of thing for Christmas?" Zen asked as he stared at the many pasta dishes on the table, going back to the topic that started the conversation.

Ran beamed, "Because it's Christmas! See? It's red and green! Christmas colors!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's still early, but better early than late. Merry Christmas!~ Happy Holidays!~


	62. A Gift for Han Jumin - Saeran

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reference to the first meeting in Unfathomable Complexities Ch. 4

The first time Saeran had met Han Jumin, had been when his mom took him along with her to give away a black kitten, Luna.  Saeran had been scared of the older man at first—he was tall with dark black hair and looked unfriendly. It was easier for Saeran to act normal with the small kitten in his hands and the comfort of his mom by his side, but he still felt uneasy and shy at the older man’s presence.

It was Mr. Han’s reaction to the kitten, that made Saeran realize why this person was mom’s best friend.  Mr. Han had looked a little scared and unsure of how to pet Luna, until she decided that he was her new favorite person by becoming a little purring motor in Mr. Han’s hands.  The small smile on the older man’s face surprised Saeran. He hadn’t thought that the unfriendly person greeting them at the door was capable of such a smile.

Saeran didn’t think that someone who was rich and looked as if they had everything could appreciate small animals, but despite however Han Jumin looked or acted, he is a kind person.  He allows Saeran to visit Luna whenever he wanted, even though it wasn’t necessary and with every visit Saeran grew to like the older man more as a person.

Saeran had never gotten anyone outside of his family a gift, but Han Jumin was not just anyone.  He was mom’s best friend and even if he never visited their house or did normal things with them—Han Jumin was a family friend.

Saeran was nervous as he talked to the front desk in the C&R building.  He felt out of place with all these adults in suits walking around, but he was determined to give Mr. Han a gift for Christmas.  It wasn’t worth a lot of money, but he had put a lot of effort into it. He could only hope that it was enough.

“Ah. Saeran.  I was surprised when you contacted me, I had thought something happened when you said you wanted to see me at my office.”  Mr. Han greeted Saeran as he came into the office.

Saeran fidgeted slightly with the large box in his hands.  “It’s because I have something for you, Mr. Han… I know it’s really late, but I still wanted to give you a Christmas present.”

“And you needed to come to my office in order to give me this gift?”

“I know you spend a lot of time in your office, and I wanted you to have something beautiful in it.”

Mr. Han’s eyebrow raised at Saeran’s comment, “Something beautiful?”

Saeran nodded before asking politely, “May I place this on your desk?”

Mr. Han nodded gesturing to go on ahead. Saeran then opened up the box to reveal his handiwork.  It was a small arrangement of white and purple orchids curling slightly and held down by a small branch within a bone white dish—it was Saeran’s first ikebana work.

Saeran explained, “I’ve been studying and researching about flower arranging.  I thought really hard about what I could do and this was the best thing I could come up with.  I’m not very good at it yet, but I thought it was kind of perfect. Out of all the things I know, this is the very best I can do and I put in all my feelings into it.  I really hope you like it.”

After saying his piece Saeran started to panic. His mind filling up with negativity.  

Oh god. What was he even saying? What was he thinking?! He’s just an amateur.  Mr. Han is going to hate it. He’s used to super fancy and expensive things. His sad little attempt was nothing in comparison to all the fancy ikebana work he had seen in books and magazines.

“You did this all on your own?  Without any help?” Mr. Han suddenly asked.

Saeran nodded not trusting his voice.

“It’s very impressive for a 15-year-old* without a teacher to be able to make something like this.”

Saeran looked up at Mr. Han, shocked. “You really think it’s impressive?”

“I would not lie to you over something so trivial.  Although, I wonder why you thought it was something that was ‘perfect’ for me.”

Saeran beamed in happiness as he explained, “I thought simply giving you flowers wouldn’t be meaningful.  Ikebana is an elegant art form for flowers that I thought it would match well with you. I used those orchids, because it symbolizes my thoughts of how I see you.”

“You put a lot of thought into a simple gift, just for me.”

“Of course! You’re an important person to our family you know!”  Saeran enthused.

“I’m glad to be held in such high regard.”

“It’s also mom’s name…”

Mr. Han smiled. “I know.”

The next day Saeran had found himself suddenly enrolled in a top-tier ikebana class in Seoul, courtesy of one  Mr. Han Jumin. The only thing that he asked in return was for orchid arrangements for his office from time to time. 

> Purple orchids symbolize admiration, respect, dignity and royalty.
> 
> White orchids symbolize reverence, humility, innocence, purity, elegance and beauty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *15-year-old Korean age
> 
> Ran/Lan = Chinese/Japanese/Vietnamese for Orchid  
> Korean: I looked this up. Ran could be used as a variation for orchid, but normally it’s nancho which is also used for Iris (another flower), I don’t have a native Korean speaker on hand to find out for sure which one is more commonly used.


	63. A Lonely Boy - Saeyoung

There was a boy in class who was always by himself.  Saeyoung couldn’t understand why that kid was always alone.  He was quiet, respectful and normal, but no one in class paid much attention to him.  No one bothered. As if he was insignificant and invisible. In turn, the kid didn’t bother trying to talk to anyone.  Seeing this bothered Saeyoung, and today he was going to do something about it.

“I’m Hwang Saeyoung and from now on we’re friends.”

Large purple eyes blinked at him, before the boy looked around him. “A-are you talking to me?”

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“Because your hair is like the color of Dr. Pepper.~”

The boy frowned, “That’s the strangest thing I have ever heard.”

“Yea~ But strange enough that you’ll never forget it. Dr. Pepper.”

The boy laughed. “Are you calling me Dr. Pepper now? You’re being ridiculous.”

Saeyoung smiled.  He understood a little now why mom was so weird.  It’s a small price to pay when you get to see a little bit of happiness in other people.  “Hmm~ Maybe I should just call you doctor. Since you’re so serious all the time.”

“No, that would be disrespectful to people who actually studied hard to become doctors.  I’m Yoosung. Kim Yoosung. I’m just your average student.”

Saeyoung shook his index finger at him. “There’s no such thing! Even an average student is capable of being great someday. The Doctor says so.”

Yoosung looked at Saeyoung confused, “Doctor who?”

Saeyoung grinned. “It is your duty as my friend to watch this series…”


	64. First Role - Zen

Zen was nervous.  This was his first show.  It was just a supporting role in a small show with his high school club, but Ran and the twins were going to be there.  It was open to the public, which meant this was practically his debut. He had rehearsed for weeks leading up to this performance.  Hopefully it would all be okay.

It had been exhilarating.  Once the curtain went up, Zen had lost himself into the role and he loved every moment of it.  He really loved it. Acting.

After the show was over, Zen had rushed out to go see Ran and the twins.  He couldn’t wait to ask what they thought of the show! Did they like it? What did they think of his performance?

Zen stopped short when he finally found them, but he couldn’t bring himself to close the distance between them.  Standing with Ran and the twins was Dong-wook hyung--his older brother--who he hadn’t seen or heard from in two years.  Why was hyung here? How did he even know to be here?

“Mother was wrong.  You have a lot of talent.” Dong-wook hyung spoke.

Zen was shocked, and he didn’t know how to respond to that.  Instead, Saeran did it for him by pushing Dong-wook to the side as he moved to be by Zen.  “Of course Zen has talent! He’s amazing!”

Both Saeran and Saeyoung stood in front of Zen, as if to defend him from Dong-wook hyung.  Dong-wook’s shoulders slumped as he took in the sight before him. Ran started to laugh as she grabbed Dong-wook’s arm and dragged him towards Zen.

“Your brother has been keeping tabs on you through me for a while now.  He’s just been too scared to talk to you. I told him you were going to have your first performance today, and he asked me for a ticket.  He would have left without seeing you if I hadn’t grabbed onto him.” Ran explained.

Zen stared at his brother wide-eyed.  “Is that true?”

Dong-wook’s face was red as he rubbed the back of his neck.  “I.. I didn’t know what to say. I said such horrible things to you the day you left, and I wasn’t sure if you even wanted to see me again.”

“No! That’s… I mean.  I was really hurt, but… Of course, I wanted to see you again.  You’re my brother… Do you really think I have talent…?” Zen felt confused.  Scared of what his brother would say. Yet hopeful.

Zen felt a hand on his shoulder, and he looked up to see Dong-wook’s big smiling face.  “You were amazing. I’ve never been happier to have been so wrong in my life.”

_Today was one of the most perfect days ever._

“Yay! My oldest is going to treat us to some barbecue!~” Ran enthused.

“I’m not really your son…” Dong-wook weakly rebutted.

“You totally are, by technicality, remember?  Plus you’re my only son with a job that can treat us to a meal.”

“Alright. Alright. Where do you want to go?” Dong-wook caved, like a stack of cards.

“Let’s go eat some Korean beef!” Ran exclaimed.

Dong-wook balked, “That’s so expensive!!  Ya, Aren’t you guys going to help me?”

Three voices chorused as one. “No, we want Korean beef.”

They all got to enjoy Korean beef barbecue, while Dong-wook hyung cried into his wallet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hyung - Korean term for older brother (used between males)
> 
> Dong-wook - It's the name I gave Zen's older brother in an earlier chapter.


	65. House Visit - Saeran & Yoosung

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yoosung visits the Hwang home

**House Visit - Saeran & Yoosung**

Saeran noticed Saeyoung was slowly starting to change. He wasn't as serious as he used to be. Saeyoung was acting like mom when they first met her, and the reason was Kim Yoosung-Saeyoung's new best friend.

After years of learning to share his loved ones with others; Saeran could proudly say that he wasn't too jealous of Yoosung for being his brother's best friend. Yoosung was a nice guy, smart, and a great study partner. This was the reason why he was the first friend Saeyoung and Saeran had ever invited to come to their home.

* * *

Despite the kitchen on the first floor being the place where they had their meals, it was still relatively empty. Mom had been planning on turning the first floor into a small cafe, while the main living space would remain on the second floor.

When Yoosung saw the house, he seemed fascinated. Specially so with the large mural at the top of the stairs on the second floor. It was a mixed media piece mom had Saeran, Saeyoung, and Zen help make. There was a mixture of different themes with flowers, musical playbill booklets, outer space, technology, art, as well as pictures of them throughout the years. It was who they were, the Hwangs. It was their Hopes and Dreams.

* * *

They went to the rooftop so that Saeran could tend to the garden and flowers.

"Wow, your house is so cool." Yoosung commented, as he inspected some of the flowers that had bloomed.

Saeran smiled, "Yeah, mom gets bored easily at night, so she's always adding or making something to give the house more personality."

"How does a house have a personality?" Yoosung asked confused.

Saeran thought about it for moment, "Well, I think it means when you walk into the house, you'll immediately know who lives there and what kind of people they are, you know?"

"Hmmm… When I came here, I immediately thought that you guys must be super interesting people. Talented, too. I'm just normal Yoosung. Nothing interesting about me. I don't even know what it is that I want to do." Yoosung said gloomily.

Saeran frowned at Yoosung. "There's nothing that you like? At all?"

Yoosung shook his head. "Nothing that comes to mind."

"Well what have you tried out so far?"

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't have to be something big or important. It can be small and then grow into something bigger. It can even change to something different. For me, I just wanted to grow something, so Mom and I started a small garden. We failed at first, but we kept trying, and then we did it. I learned that I liked flowers, so I kept going at it. Mom thought I was going to be a gardener or a florist, but lately I've been interested in the art of ikebana that I've been studying. That has more to do with the art of flowers than growing it." Saeran explained.

"Yeah, but you're lucky. You and Saeyoung already found something you guys like to do." Yoosung continued to sulk.

"Like I said, just try a bunch of things until you find something you like. You never know when you might find something you like!" Saeran told Yoosung exasperated.

"Alright…" Yoosung agreed as he helped Saeran tend the garden. Saeran inwardly sighed. He didn't know how to help his friend get over this hurdle; maybe it was something that only Yoosung could find out for himself.


	66. Zero to Hero - Saeyoung & Yoosung

Saeyoung preened as Yoosung exclaimed in awe at the awesomeness that is the computer worklab in the shed on the rooftop.

"Doesn't it get hot with all the electronics and metal? How is it so cool in here?" Yoosung asked as he looked around at all the gadgets Saeyoung had.

"Oh, my grandpa helped me with that. When we built the shed, we rigged it with the water tower Saeran uses to water his garden. My grandpa designs Air Cons for a living in America, so he did something similar to keep this room cool. We made sure to insulate it well enough so that the air doesn't escape. It uses a lot of electricity though, so we try to save money where we can by growing some of our own food, and mostly using the water in the water tower. I'm trying to make something that can generate its own electricity though. "

"Say Saeyoung."

"Hmm?"

"How did you get so good at making things?"

"Uhh… I wasn't always that great at it..."

Yoosung scoffed at that.

"No seriously. I… Kind of took apart mom's laptop… And broke it…"

"Oh my god. Are you serious?"

"Yep."

"Did you ever fix it?"

"Ehhh… No… She turned it into a sculpture… kind of…"

"How can she kind of turn it into a sculpture?"

"You see that frame hanging up there on the wall?"

Yoosung looked up on the wall. It was a large frame with bits of pieces of electronics glued together and encased in plexiglass. On the top of the frame were the English words 'Tinkerbell's First Step' in gold sparkly letters.

Yoosung looked at Saeyoung confused. "Why Tinkerbell? What does it mean first step?"

Welp! Learn from mom! The hell with shame! What is that anyways?!

"I'm Tinkerbell!~ The step is referring to a quote by Stephen McCranie. 'The master has failed more times than the beginner has even tried.' It just means that I was taking my first step as a beginner, because I tried."

"Oh… Did you fail a lot…?"

"Yep. Loads~" Saeyoung answered unashamedly.

"Didn't you get upset? Didn't your mom get upset?"

"Yeah… We did… BUT! We're pretty stubborn. We just kept going until we got it. It was pretty satisfying when I finally got something to work! It's like something finally clicked! Like.. OH! So that's how that works!"

"Oh… Do you think I'll find something like that one day?"

Saeyoung draped his arm over Yoosung's shoulders. "Of course! You're Superman Yoosung! You'll keep looking until you find something that's just right for you.~ I'll be there for you every step of the way or I'm not 707, Defender of Justice!~"

Yoosung laughed, "Thanks Seven. I'm glad to have you as a friend."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I first heard the quote it was 'The teacher has failed more times than the student has tried'. It was touted as a 'Chinese saying'. When I looked it up to find the person who made this quote it gave me something else and that was what I had decided on putting into the chapter instead.


	67. Acting Chops - Zen & Yoosung

When Zen got home from his club activities he was surprised to find the twins actually had a guest over, and that he was actually going to spend the night at their house. When he actually met the kid, they could only stare at him, mouth agape. It made him feel just a little bit uncomfortable.

"Uh, Hi. I'm Zen. Saeyoung and Saeran's older brother and you are…"

"OH! I'm Kim Yoosung! I'm their friend from school. I'm sorry for staring! It's just… You look really cool. Are you a model? An idol?"

Yoosung's introduction chased away the initial uncomfortableness Zen felt. He smiled in reply. "No, I'm just that good looking!~ I'm not too interested in becoming a model or idol; although, I am working towards becoming a musical actor."

"Wow… Aren't you still in high school? You already know what you want to do. That's so amazing. I'm kind of jealous." Yoosung admitted.

Uh oh.

"Uh, well... I didn't always know what I wanted to do. When I was in middle school my music teacher told me they thought I had a good singing voice, and she taught me to play guitar. It was how I started getting into music; I liked acting too, but I never thought to combine it with music until I started watching musicals. When I started Yongsan high school, there was a club for theatre; I had never acted before, but mom said it was a good opportunity to try it out and learn."

"OH! I know about that club! They had a show that was made available to the public not too long ago! I didn't get to go, since tickets were sold out, but I heard that the performance was amazing!"

Zen grinned as he recalled the memory of that day, "Yeah, it was my first performance! I was just in the club for fun at first, but after that show, it made me realize how much I love acting."

"Aren't you a little scared though? I've heard that field is really competitive; there's so many people working in the industry. It's not exactly a stable job…" Yoosung said hesitantly.

Yoosung's eyes then widened as he realized what he said. His voice was panicked as he tried to backtrack. "I mean! Not that I think you're not talented or anything! I… I was just…"

Yoosung's comment. It stung. It was something Zen's mother used to say about singing and playing music. It wasn't a stable job. There were people more good looking and more talented than he was. At one point even Dong-wook hyung agreed with her.

But.

Seeing Zen's acting had changed Dong-wook's mind. It had proved his brother wrong, because Zen did have talent and the ability to back it up.

"I'm going to tell you something Noona* told me. There will always be people more talented than you or just as talented as you are, but that doesn't mean that you don't have something to offer the world. You are you, and there is no one in the world like you. The things you've seen, the experiences you've had, the feelings you hold, the people you've met, your dreams, your hopes, and everything that makes up the person that is Kim Yoosung will always be special and unique. Everyone sees the world a little differently, and even if you are doing something similar to someone else, you are doing it in your own way with your views and ideas. It could end up failing or being average, but it could also end up being something really great."

Yoosung stared at Zen. "You're kind of an awesome hyung."

Zen grinned. "Of course! I already have two awesome little brothers to prove it. If you want I'll take you under my wing."

Yoosung blushed, "I'd like that… Hyung."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Noona - older sister, used by males to refer to older women  
> Hyung - older brother, used between males to refer an older male
> 
> *Zen calls Ran, Noona. I felt it more appropriate for the kind of relationship they have, even if Ran will always say he is her son.


	68. Cooking is Science - Ran & Yoosung

Even though Yoosung was a guest of the house, Ran roped him into helping her and Saeran cook dinner. This was her first time meeting one of the twins' friends. She wanted to get to know their new little friend. And the best way to learn about someone was through working with them.

Since they have a guest today Ran was planning to make some thịt kho*. Ran didn't make it very often, but it was a good Vietnamese comfort food she knew most people found palatable. It was also her favorite.

Ran was too distracted listening to Saeran and Yoosung talk about possible career choices, which was why she didn't notice the lid on the bottle of black pepper was loose. Most of the black pepper ended up in the pot. When she looked down, she screamed.

"NO! My thịt kho!" Ran scooped out as much of the pepper as she could, but when she tasted it—it was evident the damage was done. She moved to add more water into the pot, hoping it would dilute some. As she was trying to think what else she could do to fix the dish, Yoosung had offered a solution.

"Ah. I noticed earlier that you used sugar when you were cooking. You should use honey or maybe some sugar water to fix it."

Ran stared at Yoosung. "It's fixable?"

Yoosung nodded absently, "Yes. The sweetness will distract the tastebuds from the spice of the pepper. We could also add more hard boiled eggs to absorb some of the pepper to dilute it."

Now, Saeran was also staring at Yoosung, "Have you made thịt kho before?"

"Uhhh… No? I've never eaten Vietnamese food before." Yoosung

"Do you cook a lot?" Ran asked.

Yoosung scrunched his nose. "No? It's just simple science."

Ran listened to Yoosung's advice, and continued cooking silently as she observed him cooking. He was pretty handy in the kitchen for someone that doesn't cook. She had been surprised when Yoosung had offered a solution, because it made complete sense. She could have eventually come up with a similar solution, but it would have taken her a lot longer. She probably would have added more water first, and then sugar rather than honey to offset the spice of the pepper. Yoosung came up with a better solution within seconds.

Was Yoosung a naturally talented cook?

* * *

When everyone ate the thịt kho; it was with a bit of reluctance, because Ran had never added honey to it before. They were preparing to shovel rice into their mouths in case the flavor was too overwhelming. However, it was actually very tasty.

"Yoosung… Do you like cooking?" Ran asked.

Everyone at the table turned to stare at Yoosung, "Uhh… Not really? I never really thought about it. I've never really cooked; I've only helped my mom and sister a few times."

"Are you really good at science?" Ran pushed.

"A little? It's probably the only subject I'm above average in. Why?" Yoosung looked confused, wondering how the two questions correlated with one another.

"Well, I think you have some talent in cooking. I mean I've been cooking for years and I didn't think up of a solution to fix it as quickly as you did. I'm thinking it's your quick recall when it comes to sciencey stuff that gives you an edge."

"Sciencey stuff..."

"After all, cooking is a science!"

"Oh~ That's right, it is! Hey! I'm good at science... How come I'm not a good cook!?" Saeyoung whined.

Ran scoffed. "Your genius is too focused on machines and technology to stray anywhere else."

Ran lifted her can of Dr. Pepper, as if to make a toast. "Cooking is also an art! So welcome to the Hwang family, Yoosung!"

"Noona…" Zen groaned.

"Mom..." Saeran shook his head amused.

"He already has a family!" Saeyoung exclaimed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Noona - older sister, used by males to refer to older women
> 
> thịt kho - caramelized pork belly (according to google) it's a relatively common Vietnamese dish with simple ingredients that would be easily found
> 
> The next planned chapter update will be a little weird as it will be from a new and (maybe) one time perspective from a new character. So I may update with two chapters for MF next time.


	69. Choi Eun-hye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A perspective from someone new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Warning*
> 
> Slight Spoilers Ahead, Slight mentions of child abuse, alcohol abuse and mental illness.

Choi Eun-hye didn't know what to make out of Choi Ran, her long lost little sister. She was a strange little thing with bleached white hair, but she was the kindest soul Eun-hye had ever met. Who knew that an affair her father had overseas would result in a guardian angel sent just for her?

Ran had came looking for her one day in that shack of a home. Seeing her half-sister in such a poor state must have shocked her, because Ran had carried Eun-hye all the way to the hospital for treatment.

Depression. Stage 3 cirrhosis*.

She had stayed by Eun-hye's side as the doctors told them the options for treatments, transplant surgery, and rehab centers that could help. Some of it was going to be expensive and Eun-hye had no money; Ran had no reason to be spending any of her money on someone that was practically a stranger. When Ran left Eun-hye didn't expect to see her ever again.

Ran surprised her, because not only did she come back; she helped Eun-hye gain admittance to a treatment facility to help her.

"I'll try to visit you as often as I can. Just promise me you'll try to get better."

Eun-hye could only nod, still shocked at this relative stranger who seemed to care about her well-being.

Ran kept her word and visited Eun-hye often throughout her treatments and therapy. As months passed, Eun-hye grew to care about Ran more than she should, and she started telling Ran more about herself.

How Eun-hye had fallen in love with the wrong man and gotten pregnant, and their father and mother had abandoned her once she had told them about wanting to keep the baby. Her lover had left her shortly after the birth of their children, promising to return, and only sending her money every other week to support them. He never came back, and eventually even the money stopped coming. It seemed he had abandoned her a long time ago, because Eun-hye saw him in the papers getting married to another woman.

Eun-hye went to see him, only to be stopped at the gates for trespassing. She was told to keep her mouth shut or she and her children would be killed. After that, money started coming again. She didn't question it. At that time, she realized she and her children had been cast aside like trash.

Her only solace was drinking. Drinking until she forgot her loneliness. Her sadness.

Eun-hye didn't know when it started, but whenever she looked at her children, all she could see was the man that abandoned her. The man that caused her to lose everything and everyone she ever loved. All she ever felt was anger, rage, and sadness. She did horrible things. Unforgivable things.

Now her children were gone. Dead? Killed off by their father? Or just ran away from their monster of a mother? Eun-hye could only hope that wherever they were, they were happy—happier than they ever could be with her.

Ran held Eun-hye's hand. "You sound like you were a pretty shitty mother."

Eun-hye realized she was crying. Ran was probably going to abandon her now too. Just like everyone else.

"I can't say that the things you did are forgivable, because to me it all sounds horrible and you can't simply turn back time to change it. The only thing you can do is sincerely try to change and learn from this, so that it doesn't repeat itself. Accept that you might never be forgiven for it and change anyway. For yourself and for your children, who you abused."

As Eun-hye absorbed Ran's words, as she realized Ran was also crying. She looked, just as sad as Eun-hye felt.

"Why are you crying? You've done nothing wrong." Eun-hye questioned.

Ran hugged Eun-hye. "Sometimes, the right thing to do isn't the easiest. Promise me you'll get better and change, and I… I promise I'll be there for you when I can for as long as you let me."

Eun-hye smiled tearily as she embraced Ran tightly. "Thank you." For not abandoning me like everyone else. Eun-hye left unsaid.

Eun-hye really was glad to have someone like Ran as a little sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *SPOILER* Stage 3 Cirrhosis - The reasoning for this was something Saeyoung mentions in the game; sometimes his mother couldn't walk very well, and he would be sent to buy her alcohol. This is a symptom for the illness as the legs, ankles or feet would swell making it difficult to walk.
> 
> I gave her the name Eun-hye since there was no real name given to her other than Mother Choi. I added her because I felt that she will be important in the development for the twins, just as Dong-wook is for Zen. Everything happens for a reason.


	70. Ojos Azlues - Zen & Jumin

Zen had heard a lot about Han Jumin in the papers and news, because of his mom. It was all in admiration at how amazing he was for being such a successful young businessman. It didn't give Zen a good impression of Han Jumin, because all he could imagine was a cold, logical person—the kind of person his mother had wanted him to be.

However, the things that Saeran and Ran said about Han Jumin were completely different from what Zen had imagined. Kind, funny, caring, and the bestest friend anyone could ever hope for if Ran was to be believed.

Did such an amazing person exist? Not only was Han Jumin rich and successful, but he was a good person. It seemed too good to be true, which was why Zen decided to tag along with Ran today. He was finally going to meet the Hwang family friend—Han Jumin.

* * *

 

When Jumin let them into his penthouse, Zen was a little in awe at the size—his living room was the size of their second floor.

"I apologize our outing has been delayed. There is some work that I must take care of before we can leave. It will only be for a moment. Please make yourselves at home."

Jumin didn't even wait for a response before he left them in the living room. Zen frowned. "He's being kind of rude isn't he? Even if he did apologize and say please; he didn't even introduce himself."

Ran waved off Zen's concerns, "Jumin's mad about something; it probably has to do with why he's being delayed. His brain is in 'work efficiently' mode, and he tends to come off as rude to people who don't know him very well."

Ran plopped herself onto one of the sofas and gestured for Zen to do the same while they waited for Jumin. A black cat jumped onto the sofa next to her. "Oh~ Let me introduce you. This is Luna, Saeran and I found her and gave her to Jumin a few years ago."

Zen shook his head as he moved closer to pet Luna, "I can't believe you gave a rich corporate heir a black stray kitten you found."

"Hey! Black cats are lucky! We made sure she was vaccinated and completely free of any fleas or parasites before we even brought her to Jumin." Ran countered.

Luna purred under his hand, and Zen couldn't help melting a little at her cuteness. When she opened her eyes, Zen noticed that she had the deepest blue eyes he had ever seen. "She is really pretty."

"Ran is correct; Luna was certainly a lucky find." Jumin's voice started Zen, he didn't even hear the older man come back at all.

"It took a bit of time, but I found that Luna is actually an extremely rare breed called Ojos Azules. There hasn't been much information on the breed due to their rarity, but they are known to be intelligent, loyal, friendly, and affectionate. They also happen to be hypoallergenic."

"She sounds like the perfect cat for anyone to have. I wonder why someone would choose to abandon something so rare..." Zen commented.

"Ojos Azules have been found only in America thus far. It stands to reason that an average Korean will not know of it's rarity or worth at a glance, and there is also the added fact of superstitions surrounding black cats. It is a sad fact, but oftentimes people are quick to judge based on appearances." Jumin stated.

Zen stared at Luna as he continued to pet her. He knew what it was like to be judged based on looks. He found it sad that a kitten was abandoned and ignored because of the color of its fur. If people had only looked beyond its appearance and got to know it, they would have surely loved her. She just needed a chance.

"You're a pretty good guy, Mr. Jumin." Zen said softly.

Jumin adjusted the cuffs of his sleeves looking slightly flustered. "Thank you. It's not something I often hear after meeting someone for the first time."

"Okay.~ Let's all wash our hands before we go out. I may love cats, but they also regularly bathe themselves in their own spit." Ran chimed in.

Zen stopped petting Luna, "Noona… Did you really have to say it like that? You could have just asked me to wash my hands."

"Yeah, but this way you'll never ever forget to wash your hands after touching or petting any animals." Ran rebutted.

Zen couldn't deny it, because now that thought was stuck in head forever.

"I always make sure to keep Luna clean." Jumin remarked.

Ran laughed, "Facts are facts. Admit it, Jumin. Ever since I've told you, you've been washing your hands too."

Jumin said nothing as they all went to wash their hands before their outing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ojos Azules is a real actual cat breed recognized in the mid 90's found in New Mexico. It's Spanish for Blue Eyes. I found it very ironic and appropriate.
> 
> Also if you don't know what noona means by now I'm disappointed in you.


	71. Outback - Zen & The Twins

It had not been planned. It was just the way it was when it came to how the Hwang household functioned. Once Ran decided on something, whether it was planned or on a whim, everyone was swept away. After several phone calls and preparations to ensure all academic and legal things were done in order for the boys to leave the country, they were now all at the airport trying to get through security with the tickets Ran had hastily bought online. The reason? To visit their sick great grandmother.

One moment they were in line trying to board a plane to get to Australia; the next thing they knew they were whisked away by a pair of people in suits, and boarding Han Jumin's private plane—who also decided to come with them. Ran was amazing in the amount of people she could rope into following her. Maybe a bit terrifying.

Saeran and Saeyoung had been amazed the entire flight and spent most of it with their eyes nearly glued to the windows—watching the landscapes and buildings as they flew over them.

Zen and the twins were more than prepared when they greeted their great grandmother at the airport. They were only mildly surprised when she had lightly bit them in jest as she hugged them, because it had already been obvious to them—weirdness ran in the Hwang family. They lived, breathed, and heard stories about all the strangeness that entailed being a Hwang, which made them less prone to surprises.

However, Han Jumin was not so lucky because he was only subjected to the Hwang bizarreness in small doses through Ran. The expression on his face when great grandmother smacked his bottom jokingly was hilarious. It took everything for them not to laugh out loud then and there. Jumin had been in such a daze that he had even agreed to stay at one of their great aunt's house instead of a hotel.

It was a new experience for the three boys. To be spending time with so many people that saw them as family, surrounded with love and laughter. Being able to see a rich corporate heir fumble around was an added bonus. Even if they were miles away from Korea where they lived—it still felt like home.

The next morning it was announced that Ran's parents and sister were flying in from Texas. It was slowly turning into a Hwang family reunion.

This was going to be so exciting!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Fact: Most asian languages are derived from Chinese. Why? To my knowledge, TLDR , Chinese got a head start in development in everything, especially, in culture and language. That's why there's so many similar sounding words among the asian languages. If you're listening for it; you'll definitely hear it. Why is this important?
> 
> The ever-changing surname Hoang and Hwang! It's actually derived from the surname Chinese Huang. Hoang is Vietnamese, whereas Hwang is Korean. This surname is so ancient it can be traced back to a legendary Chinese emperor as well as a few kingdoms during the first three dynasties (my dad is pretty proud of this fact)
> 
> That's the reason why there's been confusion, because Ran's name can work as a Chinese, Korean or Vietnamese name. I don't think there's a Japanese equivalent though. T^T
> 
> As for the meaning of Huang/Hwang/Hoang, it's yellow or gold.


	72. Twinsies

The twins stared at their newly arrived aunt Trang, and couldn't help comparing her to their mom. Seeing her on a computer screen and seeing her in person was a completely different experience, especially now when they could see her standing next to their mom. Other than mom's bleached hair color and shorter haircut; they looked like twins.

"Are you sure you're not twins?" Saeyoung asked.

Aunt Trang glanced at Saeyoung before she turned to look at her sister. She then shocked both Saeyoung and Saeran when she reached for their mom's breast with one hand while the other gestured towards her own. "No, if she was I think I would be even more upset that she took all the boob genes with her in the womb."

It was then they noticed that while their mom was very well endowed in the chest area, Aunt Trang was… Less so.

"Dammit! Why do you get to have such huge boobs?! Double Ds?! Really?! I'm only nearly B?! What the hell is that even?! Couldn't you have given me some of that?!" Aunt Trang complained as she squeezed mom harder. It seemed Saeyoung had touched upon a sensitive topic.

"Boobs are nothing but fat! It's because you work out too damn much! It's not my fault all your fat went to your ass instead!" Mom retorted and grabbed at Aunt Trang's butt in retaliation—who screeched in indignation.

Just... What… What were these two sisters doing? Pawing at each others bits like animals?


	73. Life - Zen & Jumin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jumin and Zen spend some time together in Brisbane.

Today was an unusual day. Ever since they landed in Brisbane, they have spent most of the time together with everyone. Today, they decided to split up. Noona had gone with her aunt to talk about ideas and plans for a cafe, and somehow Zen had ended up as the only volunteer with Jumin to check out other cafes for unique ideas.

There were at least three cafes nearby. Apparently, Zen was supposed to walk there with Han Jumin, alone. The thought made Zen a little nervous. He'd never spent any time alone with the rich heir doing something as mundane as this. So far on this trip, Jumin had surprised them all with how adaptable he was with their 'commoner lifestyle', despite living in luxury all his life. But that was in the company of everyone. This time it was with Zen alone.

"Ran had set this up in order for me to speak with you." Jumin interrupted Zen from his panic, bringing him into confusion instead.

"Talk to me? About what?"

"She was concerned when she noticed you hadn't spoken to her about your plans for college or the future. She thought that perhaps an outside male figure would be easier to speak with than with someone close."

"Oh…"

"She told me under no circumstances am I to pressure you into making any decisions, but she just wanted to make sure that you are considering your options and if you needed any assistance we are here to provide it for you." Jumin explained.

Zen sighed, "Dong-wook hyung told me about what noona did. She paid my mom a lot of money to become my guardian, and it was all because she didn't want me to box up my hopes and dreams. What kind of person does that? For a stranger? She barely knew me and I even tried to mug her when I first met her! And now she wants to keep spending even more money to ensure my future? It's not like noona is rich and has money to spare. It doesn't make any sense!"

"Does it have to make sense in order for you to accept it? The world rarely makes sense as it is. The good are not always rewarded, and the bad are not always punished. Life is rarely black and white. At best, it is gray. Ran understands that, yet she wants to see it be better; she wants to personally make it better and you just so happen to pass her way."

"But how could I ever repay her for everything she's done? How can I keep going? It feels selfish. It feels wrong."

"You may frown upon what I have to say regarding this, but I would say you have been a worthy investment on her part. Your talents have only improved throughout the years. You've been under her care, and I believe it will only improve exponentially with either more experience or further instruction."

"How would I be an investment to noona? And how do you know about that? I don't think I've ever seen you at any of my shows." Zen stated confused.

"You will learn as you get older that benefits are not limited to only money, but to status, goods, and services as well. As for how do I know about your talents… Well, you know how Ran is about photo and video evidence. She records everything, and I happen to be the one she loves to show off to most." Jumin explained, fondly.

Zen couldn't explain it, but for some reason knowing that Jumin had watched all of his performances and was complimenting Zen in his own way felt embarrassing. He could feel his face turning red, and Zen didn't want Jumin to see how embarrassed he felt now that he knew Jumin had seen all his performances. As soon as they arrived, Zen rushed into the cafe. "I-I'm going to go in first!"

The sight that greeted Zen was a multitude of cats. Apparently it was a cat cafe.

His skin started to itch.

"You could have wait-" Jumin stopped. "Hyun? Are you alright?"

Zen couldn't breathe. His eyes were watering and his vision was blurring. He could barely hear Jumin's voice before he passed out.

* * *

 

When Zen woke up, it was to a white ceiling and he had something that felt like a mask on his face. He turned his head to see Ran sitting nearby, asleep.

"You had everyone worried." It was Jumin.

"What happened?" Zen winced. His throat hurt!

"Don't speak. I'll explain everything you've missed as well as why you're in this state. It seems that you have an allergy to cats. Your severe reaction was due to several factors, one of which is due to the negligence of the cafe's upkeep, the amount of cats they had, and the fact they had many unaltered males.*"

Zen felt confused, "Luna?"

"Ah. If you were wondering why you didn't have such a reaction when you touched Luna it is due to the fact that she is female, spayed, and a breed that doesn't secrete as much of the particular protein that trigger the allergic reaction, which is why she's considered hypoallergenic." Jumin explained.

There was a short silence before Jumin continued, "You worried me. We were just speaking about your bright future and suddenly it was almost made irrelevant."

Zen turned to look at Jumin. He'd never seen the older man look so troubled. It felt a little weird, but nice. To have such a capable person care about him.

"Hyung… Do you think college will help my acting..?" Zen's voice was small and a little raspy, but Jumin heard it loud and clear based on the small smile he gave Zen.

"Anything that you choose to do would only serve to enhance your acting."

"Then that's what I want to do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know?
> 
> Cat Allergy - It's not the cat fur people are allergic to; it's the Fel d 1 protein in their saliva and skin. Male cats, especially unaltered, produce the most of this protein. The amount of fur matters due to the dander, which could cause allergic reactions making long-haired cats bad for someone who has a cat allergy.
> 
> Preventions: Good air filters, grooming cats daily, bathing the cats, no carpeting, cleaning bedding areas
> 
> Elizabeth the Third is a Persian, which is a long-haired breed, and she's not spayed. Meaning she probably gives off a lot of this protein, which Zen is totally allergic to.


	74. Older & Younger

"We finally meet face to face spawn of my sister!" Aunt Trang declared dramatically.

"That's not entirely accurate, but I'll take it anyways!~" Saeyoung played along, smiling.

"I have heard of your exploits and your genius when it comes to building gadgets! I am proud to know that Rachel has such a talented son!"

"Wait. Who's Rachel?" Saeyoung asked, now confused at the sudden name drop.

"My sister never told you? Every boyfriend or lover she's ever had we've given girl names. It started because it was the only way we could talk about them when my parents were around without them knowing. Like super secret stuff." Aunt Trang whispers conspiratorially.

"Really? Like what?"

"Well. Her first crazy ex we called Marcy, her second we called Brenda, and her husband she always called Raquel, but I prefer Rachel. In the end I won, because it was way catchier than Raquel. Right now I'm trying to think of one for Jumin. Korean names are hard yo."

"But… It's not like Jumin's a secret. I think it's pretty obvious by now they're in love or something." Saeyoung muttered.

Aunt Trang stared at Saeyoung dead in the eye. "Because life's more fun that way! There's no way I'm letting Ju Min-ah get away without a nickname from me! Oooh or should I go with Min Joo? Nahh, I think Min-ah sounds cuter."

"Pfftt!" Saeyoung couldn't help laughing. "I dare you to say that to his face!"

"Psh! You think I won't? I'm giving him a lifelong nickname! I'm totally going to say it to his face!"

* * *

 

"Min-ah."

"Ju Min-ah."

Jumin turned to stare at Aunt Trang. "I'm sure I recall introducing myself as Han Jumin."

"Yes, I remember."

Jumin frowned. "I'm not sure if our relationship is at a junction in which it's appropriate for you to refer to me so informally."

"Wait. Is that a Korean thing too? Jumin-ah is a thing too?"

"Was that not what you were referring to?"

"Omigod. Wait. What does it mean? The whole Jumin-ah thing? As your new sister I demand to know!"

"Ah is a postposition usually added onto a name as a show of affection to someone younger with whom you are close to. It is only used informally, of course." Jumin explained.

"Oh my god this is hilarious. I'm never going to not call you Min-ah." Aunt Trang guffawed.

Jumin frowned. "Are you referring to me as Min-ah?"

"Yes!" Aunt Trang replied as she continued to laugh.

"Min-ah is not an affectionate nickname; it is commonly a female's name. Yet you are calling me, Han Jumin, Min-ah."

"Yep." Aunt Trang affirmed, unrepentant.

"I do not wish to accept this nickname of yours."

"Nothin' you can do about it Min-ah. I'm older than you are and you're totally in lurve with my sister. So deal with it." Aunt Trang replied smugly.

Saeyoung would never forget; the disturbed expression on Jumin's face once he realized there was no winning with Aunt Trang.

Aunt Trang was Saeyoung's new idol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adding -ah/-ie to a first name is a show of intimacy for someone younger than you, usually in a non-romantic or familial kind of way.
> 
> Something someone a lot older than you like a granny, auntie, or mom would call you. A diminutive if you will. Similar to the English version of Bill to Billy or the Mexican version of Rafael to Rafito.
> 
> There are probably more rules to that someone more fluent or knowledgeable in Korean would be able to tell you, but roughly this is my understanding of it.
> 
> Trang is the same age as Jumin & V, although she is months older than they are. Trang - May; V/Jihyun - September; Jumin - October
> 
> As far as female names for all my exes and husband... This is true. ^^;


	75. Witnesses - Zen & Trang

It didn't take long for Zen to recover from the allergic reaction he had before he was already out with everyone else. Today, they were all out on the Gold Coast beach to enjoy the day together. The weather was cool with a slight breeze, the white sand was warm underneath his bare feet, and the sounds of the waves from the bright blue ocean were relaxing. It was a perfect day to be outdoors.

Zen had lost track of how long he had been playing volleyball with Ran's cousins and Trang, before they called for a water break.

"Dude, you're like a beast. Don't you ever run out of energy? It makes me wonder what you'd be like once you start banging." Trang said offhandedly.

"Start what?!" Zen was mortified.

Trang looked at him blankly. "Start having sex. What else? With your energy and looks. You're totally gunna to be a player. Aren't you at that age already? Where you're starting to think about that kinda thing? Omigod, don't tell me. Do you really need to have 'The Talk'? At your age? Really?"

"NO!" Zen protested, "I already know everything I need, thank you very much!"

"Oh really?" Trang smirked at him, "If you need any tips, let big sister know. After all, I am a medical student with plenty of experience." She made sure to emphasize plenty by dragging the particular word out slowly.

Great.

"Oh! It looks like my sister and Jumin are having some lovey love love time. Wanna go spy on them?" Trang asked

"What?! Where?!" Zen rushed after Trang, who had gone to hide behind some rocks nearby using her phone to record them.

"What are you doing?" Zen hissed at her.

"I'm recording for posterity!" She hissed back.

As Zen watched Jumin and Ran, he had to admit that he was in awe at the words he heard from Jumin. How you could slowly fall in love with someone on any simple and ordinary day without knowing.

Rather than being a player like Trang said, Zen would rather fall in love and find someone to confess to, genuinely, like Jumin hyung.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The event witnessed is what happened between Ran & Jumin in Chapter 7 of Unfathomable Complexities. They only witnessed/recorded part of it.
> 
> At this point, Zen's international age is 18 and 19 Korean age wise.


	76. Going Home - Saeran

When Saeran saw mom and Aunt Trang say goodbye to each other, he understood. All Saeran had to do was imagine what it would be like to say goodbye to Saeyoung and be separated from him for thousands of miles. Only being able to reach him by phone, email, or video call. He wouldn't have been able to bear it, while his mom and aunt had been separated for almost six years before seeing each other recently.

Saeran couldn't even begin to imagine what it would be like to be separated from his twin for that long.

No one knew what to do for mom. It was silent and awkward the entire way back home, but Saeran knew that all she wanted was comfort. Someone to hold onto. Someone to let her know that everything would be okay. So he held onto her. Saeran hugged her. He let her know that he would be there for her. She wouldn't be alone or lonely.

The tiny smile mom gifted Saeran was enough to let him know. Everything was okay. She was okay.

Saeran glanced at Saeyoung.

One day they would have to go their own ways, too. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow; but one day.

It wouldn't be forever, but it would hurt all the same.

Saeran smiled at all the memories they were building together and sharing together. They will hurt when they're separated, but they exist! Mom, Mr. Jumin, Zen, Yoosung, Saeyoung hyung, Aunt Trang, Grandpa, Great-Grandma and so many aunts and uncles! So many people. So many wonderful memories! Everything has become so much more wonderful, so much more amazing than he had ever thought it could ever become! From the time he had lived in the small little house all those years ago, when it was just him and Saeyoung.

Even if the day came when Saeran had to leave home one day, it would only be for a short while, and he would always have a place he wanted to come back to.

Where his family and friends were.

Home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll probably be slowing down on updates to one or two chapters a week... It's about to get pretty plot heavy after a couple of chapters and the struggle is real. T^T


	77. The Greenhouse Cafe - Saeran & Saeyoung

Ever since they got back from Brisbane, mom had been busy preparing the first floor to open their cafe. After years of plans and preparations, it was finally ready to be open to the public. Apparently, the theme of the cafe was a greenhouse, which would require part of Saeran's expertise. There was even a small stage where acoustic performances could be held.

The Greenhouse Cafe was going to be a family owned business filled with things they loved.

* * *

The first opening day was filled with the twins' friends from school, people from Zen's club, a few of mom's co-workers, and some curious neighbors. As time passed, it became apparent their main clientele were women. They came more to oogle Zen than to drink the coffee or eat the cakes.

The twins were at the counter with their mom as they stared at Zen chatting up all the ladies in the cafe.

Mom sighed, "I studied latte art from my aunt for two days straight for nothing… No one cares… All these women care about is staring at my beautiful son."

Saeran patted his mom's back, comforting her. "It's alright mom. No one seems to like the cakes I made either."

Saeyoung was bored, his head propped atop his hand, "I don't get it. I know Zen's pretty awesome, but they're kinda crazy about him. What's so great about Zen?"

The bell atop the door chimed signaling a new customer. It was a man in a black three piece suit with a long black coat. His black hair was messy, and his face was obscured by a black face mask. He kind of looked like a criminal.

How funny.

Saeyoung laughed outright, while Saeran smiled indulgently.

They couldn't believe that mom convinced Jumin to come to the cafe disguised.

Barely and poorly, but still disguised nevertheless.

Mom, of course, didn't care about how Jumin looked and gave him a hug, "Honey.~ No one likes my latte art at all.~ Comfort me.~"

Jumin stroked her hair, "Did you have a hard time today, my love?"

"Yes, your love definitely had a hard time today. All these women are vultures! It's a good thing we taught our Zenny well or else he'd fall prey to them already." Their mom whispered conspiratorially causing Jumin to chuckle.

After their mom made Jumin his coffee, she took him upstairs…

"They're basically on a date aren't they?" Saeyoung asked.

"I think we're better off pretending we don't know anything if we want to keep everything PG-13." Saeran replied.

"You're right brother of mine."


	78. Long Haired Beauty - Zen & Dong-wook

After a few weeks of being open, noona decided to hire a college student for the cafe to handle more of the business. There simply wasn't enough time in the day to take care of everything by themselves. Noona had too many responsibilities and everyone still had school to worry about.

What Zen hadn't expected was for his brother to fall in love with the new part-timer noona had hired.

* * *

As soon as they walked into the cafe, they were greeted by the sight of a young woman with long wavy hair tied loosely behind her in a light pink apron. "Welcome to the Greenhouse Cafe. What would you like today?"

"Ah…. A Americano… Please…" Dong-wook hyung sounded a little shy. This surprised Zen. He had never heard his brother sound so weird.

"Noona. This is my brother. Ryu Dong-wook. Hyung, This is Kang Jaehee, the new part-timer I was telling you about." Zen introduced them to each other.

"Oh. It's nice to meet you. Are you both looking for Ran Eonni? She stepped out a few hours ago and said she wouldn't be back until later this evening." Jaehee replied, her brows furrowed in worry.

"Ah… That's alright. I had some paperwork I could take care of while I'm waiting, and I'm sure Hyun can keep me company for the time being."

Jaehee gave them a businesslike smile, "Then, I'll leave you to your paperwork and have your Americano out as soon as it's ready. Please let me know if you need anything else."

Rather than going upstairs or to a corner where it would have been quieter, Dong-wook chose to sit where he could see the new part-timer busying herself working. Zen couldn't even hold a conversation because Dong-wook's attention kept going back to Jaehee.

Zen propped his chin onto his hand, "I've never seen a guy become so lovestruck over a girl before. At least Jumin hyung still pays attention to what's going on around him."

It took Dong-wook a full minute before registering what Zen had said, "I'm sorry, what?"

Zen gave an overbearing sigh, "Are you attracted to the new part-timer?"

Dong-wook turned bright red, flailing, as he made shushing sounds at Zen. "What if she hears you?!"

"Dude… You're overreacting. She's too busy working to be paying attention to what we're talking about."

Dong-wook nervously glanced towards Jaehee, who was smiling and busy serving another cafe guest at another table further away. He smiled and sighed, "She's really pretty."

There was a niggling suspicion building with Dong-wook's strangeness. "Hyung… Could it be… You've never dated anyone before..?"

Dong-wook stiffened and chose not to say a word. Zen was speechless.

Seriously?

"Hyung… You're 10 years older than me! How could you have never dated anyone before? Did you even think about dating?" Zen whispered, shocked at this new revelation of his brother.

"I was too focused with my studies! It wasn't important! It's normal!"

"Normal?! It's totally not normal! You're a guy! You're like 30 and you haven't even thought about dating once?! Most people your age are already done playing around and thinking about getting married!"

"M-m-married?! I'm too young for that!" Dong-wook flustered.

"Hyung... Forget marriage. You haven't even dated a single soul yet. Marriage is too advanced for you. I don't get why you're not dating already. Your career is already stable enough. Didn't you say that you became a permanent staff member of Jumin hyung's legal team two years ago?"

Dong-wook stared at Zen. "Are you sure you're not my mother? Or maybe our roles are reversed? My younger brother definitely should not be saying these things to me."

"Dong-wook hyung, you're romantically constipated. Thankfully, I'm more experienced than you are. Now, at the end of Jaehee's shift, you're going to ask her out."

"What?! What if she says no?!"

"So? What if she says yes? You'll never know if you don't try."

* * *

Near the end of the day Zen watched as his brother fumbled through asking Jaehee out on a date. She seemed shocked at first, but judging by the small blush on her face, it went well. Zen could only sigh at the sight of his brother's happy expression.

Who knew his life would lead him to being his older brother's wingman of all people?


	79. Secret Agent Man? - Saeyoung

Saeyoung was pacing in his room, before throwing himself onto his bed.

He had a decision to make.

Not so much a decision, but he needed to take action. He needed to cut ties with everyone he loved. In order to protect Saeran. In order to protect mom. Zen. Jumin. Aunt Trang. Everyone he loved. He needed to leave.

He cried into his pillow. It wasn’t supposed to be this hard.

He didn’t want to leave, but he didn’t want anyone to get hurt because of him either.

V had found a way for him to keep everyone around him safe. A job. But. It meant that he had to leave everyone behind.

A secret life.

As an agent in a secret organization.

It sounded cool… But, really, it was terrifying.

Saeyoung had no choice. It was the only way. He grabbed a bag and started packing his necessities.

Saeyoung hesitated with the last piece of his possessions. It was one of his favorite photos of his family. They had taken it shortly after finalizing the papers for Zen to become part of their family. He couldn’t take anything tying him with anyone, which meant that he couldn’t take a single photo to remember them by. He could only keep them in his memories, because he was about to become a ghost.

It didn’t matter as long as everyone is safe. Saeyoung was fine with this. V hyung had to be right, after all.

Saeyoung placed the photograph back on his nightstand, dried his tears, and left.


	80. Fire with Fire - Ran & Jumin

Their hands were intertwined with one another as they sat in the backseat of Jumin's car. Jumin fondly gazed upon Ran's blissful expression as she slept leaning against him. She looked exceptionally adorable in slumber. He couldn't bear to wake her, even long after his driver had informed him that they had arrived in front of her house. It had only been a week since Australia, and Jumin already missed her constant presence by his side.

There was a sudden slam of a gate jolting Ran awake, which drew both of their attention towards the noise. It was Saeyoung. He was carrying a large bag with him. He seemed troubled as he hefted the bag onto his shoulders turning to leave the house. Ran must have seen something in Saeyoung's expression, because she frantically opened the car door to run after him. She didn't call out to him. She simply ran.

As Jumin got out of the car to assess the situation, he could see Ran had already gotten a hold of Saeyoung, who seemed to be struggling to get out of her grasp as she dragged him inside the house. They went inside the cafe on the first floor, before Ran decided to speak.

"Where did you think you're going?" Ran's voice was cold.

"I-I'm staying at a friend's house." Saeyoung stuttered in reply.

"Then why didn't you call or text me? And why do you need so much stuff?" Ran frowned as she pulled on his large overstuffed bag.

"I'm 17! I don't need to tell you where I'm going all the time!"

"You do if you're living under my roof!"

"Well then maybe I don't want to live with you anymore!" Saeyoung sneered at Ran.

Jumin was shocked at that admission, because Saeyoung had shown no desire of such a thing in the past few weeks while they were in Brisbane. It was unexpected and hurtful, but Ran had a strange expression-a thin and seemingly condescending smile-it unnerved Jumin. It wasn't an expression he'd ever seen her make in all the years he'd known her.

"And you're going to just run away and abandon everyone, including Saeran?" Ran retorted.

"I'M NOT ABANDONING ANYONE!" Saeyoung screamed.

"Then why are you running away? Why are you suddenly leaving?"

"I'm not-"

"That's bullshit! I've run away from home enough times to know what you're doing. Don't lie to me." The anger in her voice surprised Jumin, and judging from Saeyoung's wide eyed expression, he wasn't the only one.

"I-I'm going to go live on my own from now on! I don't need you to take care of me anymore! Stop treating me like a kid!"

"I'll stop when you stop acting like one, because only a kid would choose to run away from home in the dead of night for no reason and without an explanation. How are you expecting to live on your own without help? You're only 17, and you haven't even finished school yet. Do you even have a job?"

"I don't need your help, and I have a job!"

"Doing what?"

Saeyoung remained silent for a moment, as if thinking, before he mumbled. "Hacking..."

This answer stirred Jumin into speaking, who had remained silent since Ran and Saeyoung started arguing. "I highly doubt the credibility of whichever organization that decided a minor would be a good recruit for such a profession."

Saeyoung's expression turned grim as his hands clenched beside him. "Things will be better for everyone this way."

"How would having you work for a shady organization be better for everyone? You would be in danger and we in turn will worry for your safety." Jumin countered.

"You don't understand! It's safer this way!" Saeyoung stressed.

"You're talking about your bio dad aren't you?" Ran interjected.

A look of sheer panic crossed Saeyoung's face, "How do you know about him?!"

"Do you honestly think I care about you so little that I wouldn't look into it after what happened? I thought you would have trusted me enough to tell me if you were planning on doing something as stupid as this."

"It's not stupid! If I disappear then I can keep everyone safe."

Ran stared at Saeyoung. "For a self proclaimed genius, you sure make stupid decisions. If your bio dad is such a horrible guy, what makes you think this organization won't just kill you off if he pays them enough money? If this organization is shady, then it means the jobs are dangerous; and if your dad doesn't manage to kill you, you're still willingly putting yourself in a position where you can be killed off without him having to do anything. You're practically doing him a favor at this point. There's also the fact that by hiding yourself away, it would make killing you off secretly in some alley even easier. Why would you choose to make things easier for him?"

Saeyoung eyes had started to fill with tears of frustration as Ran pointed out several possibilities of how his plan would have failed. His voice was strained and upset as he asked, "Then what do I do?! What can I do?"

"Your way of thinking is too narrow-minded! Why did you think that your only choice was to hide? You can always do the opposite and stand out! Get famous enough that everyone in the country knows who you are! Become a weed and dig your roots so deep you become near unkillable!"

Silence.

"That makes no sense. How does becoming famous help anything? Won't that make us an easier target?" Saeyoung sounded reluctant.

"What she says does hold some merit. By gaining popularity within the country, you become a more difficult target. Not only will you be scrutinized by the public, but any major events surrounding you will be as well. It won't keep you completely safe, but it will allow you a better lifestyle, and there is the fact that fame itself has power." Jumin remarked.

"I'd really hate for you to be gawked at, but this way you can stay with us. It will allow you to do something you love rather than being told what to do and how to live the rest of your life. It'll be difficult, but it will be better, because you'll have us to help you. You'd even have Jumin's help."

"Yes. My assistance will be given without question, after all, you and Saeran are important to me." Jumin replied.

Saeyoung stared at Jumin in surprise before throwing himself onto Jumin for a hug without warning. Saeyoung's voice was slightly muffled, "You're important to me, too… I don't want anything to happen to you either."

Jumin was momentarily shocked, before he returned the hug and assured Saeyoung's worries. "The likelihood of something happening to me is less than 1%, therefore you should not worry yourself. I promise I will utilize everything at my disposal to make sure you are all safe."

"He's Han Jumin after all, y'know!" Ran perked, her anger outwardly forgotten. She then joined in, embracing the both of them.

As they parted from the group hug, Ran's hand slipped into Jumin's, grasping it tightly. She smiled at Saeyoung. "Now go upstairs and unpack, we'll talk more about this tomorrow, okay?"

Saeyoung nodded in reply before he quickly left, leaving Jumin and Ran in the cafe. They were both silent for a moment, before Jumin broke it and asked. "Who is their father to merit this much fear?"

Ran sighed before dragging him to a table to sit down. "I got in contact with their mother a few months ago. I'm currently posing as her long lost half sister, and I've been taking care of her for the past few months."

"Taking care of her?"

Ran nodded, "She was diagnosed with stage 3 cirrhosis and depression, and I took her to a treatment facility to recover. She's currently staying there for the time being."

"Why did you contact her?

"I thought that one day, the twins would want answers, or maybe even want to see her again. I wanted to make sure that if they didn't get to see her, then I could still be able to give them answers they needed."

"And what did you find..?"

"More than I wanted to know, but I believe it will provide them with some comfort to know she had loved them and their father in the beginning. I think her loneliness, depression, and illness started taking a toll on her. She began abusing them for looking like their father shortly after finding out that he had abandoned her and their children. And their father… Is Choi Saejoong."

"The man that just became prime minister?" Jumin asked, alarmed.

Ran nodded. "I didn't know who it was until he came onto the news a few days ago. I was with their mother, Choi Eun-hye, at that time. She had a mild panic attack when it came on, and she told me he was her former lover and their father."

It wasn't often Jumin found himself at a loss, because this problem could not be solved simply with money. This required social power and many connections within the business and political realms. While money could help him obtain a portion of these connections, Jumin was not yet in a position for anyone to desire to curry any favors from him. He may currently be one of C&R's Lead Directors, but it was only for the business department.

Jumin needed to become the CEO before he could begin to have enough power to protect them. He closed his eyes and slowly let out a breath. "It seems we have a lot of work ahead of us."

"Do you regret it…?" Ran asked in a quiet voice.

Jumin opened his eyes to look at Ran, her expression closed off and blank.

"What would I have to regret?"

"For getting involved with me, because now it seems I will have to use you for everything you're worth. Aren't I just a shameless woman at this point?" Ran spoke with derision towards herself.

Jumin grasped her hands on the table, "There is nothing to regret when I can do something for the woman I love, and I see no problem for you to use me as you see fit."

Her large brown eyes looked into his with apprehension. "Then… Can you stay..? I know it's selfish of me, but I really don't want to be alone tonight."

"Of course, my love." Jumin replied with a small smile.

That night, as Jumin laid on the bed with Ran asleep in his arms, there was only one prevailing thought on his mind. He needed to speed up his progress towards promotion not only to protect them, but to finally ask Ran to marry him and make her his before he lost control breaking all of his rules.

Needless to say, it was a long while before Jumin finally fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please bear with me...  Not only have I been a bit ill for the past week, but I'm currently having a bit of a writer's block...  I know where I'm going with this, but the devil is in the details...  Plus Unfathomable Complexities will probably be delayed due to the new update Chertiz has planned for Valentine's day, since it IS going to be a Rika chapter.  I really want to see what Cheritz has in store for her.


End file.
